Ondo Gov. Lucky Aiyedatiwa takes oath for first and last term in office

Mr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa, erstwhile Deputy to the late Gov. Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN), was on Monday inaugurated as the Governor of Ondo State.

Persecondnews reports that by the oath taking, he has commenced his first and four-year term having served out Akeredolu’s tenure following his death in December 2023.

Aiyedatiwa had taken oath as governor along with his deputy, Dr. Olayide Adelami, from Owo, Akeredolu’s town.

Again today, the duo’s and swearing-in ceremony took place on Monday at the Ondo State Sports Complex in Akure, the state capital, two months after Aiyedatiwa won the governorship election as the candidates of the All Progressives Congress.

He polled 366,781 votes to defeat his closest rival Agboola Ajayi of PDP who scored 117,845 votes.

Aiyedatiwa took his oath of office as the seventh Ondo State governor just after his running mate, Adelami.

Following his inauguration, Aiyedatiwa celebrated by riding in an open van around the Ondo State Sports Complex, waving to the enthusiastic cheers of his supporters.

Born on January 12, 1965 in Obe-Nla, an oil-producing community in the Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State, Aiyedatiwa’s education began at Saint Peter’s Primary School in Obe-Nla, and he completed his secondary education at Ikosi High School, Ketu, Lagos, in 1982.

He holds a Nigeria Certificate in Education in Economics and Government from Lagos State College of Education (now Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education), obtained in 1986.

Furthering his education, he earned an Advanced Diploma in Business Administration from the University of Ibadan in 2001, a Postgraduate Certificate in Chief Executive Education from Lagos Business School in 2009, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Liverpool in 2013.

Before entering politics, Aiyedatiwa had a diverse career spanning education, pharmaceuticals, finance, and general merchandise. In 1996, he founded the Blue Wall Group of Companies, which had interests in trading, foreign exchange, and travel logistics.

His political career began in 2011 with the Action Congress of Nigeria, which later merged into the APC. He served as a Federal Commissioner representing Ondo State on the Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission from 2018 to 2019.

In 2020, he was elected as Deputy Governor alongside Governor Akeredolu and assumed office as governor following Akeredolu’s passing.