Biographical overview
Provincial Secretary. Awolowo was responsible for much of the progressive social legislation that has made Nigeria a modern nation.[2] Awolowo was the first Leader of Government Business and Minister of Local Government and Finance, and first Premier of the Western Region under Nigeria's parliamentary system, from 1952 to 1959. He was the official Leader of the Opposition in the federal parliament to the Balewa government from 1959 to 1963. In 1963 he was imprisoned under the accusations of sedition and was not pardoned by the government until 1966, after which he assumed the role as Minister of Finance. In recognition of all these, Awolowo was the first individual in the modern era to be named Leader of the Yorubas (Yoruba: Asiwaju Awon Yoruba or Asiwaju Omo Oodua).
Biographical record
- Title
- Chief
- Surname
- AWOLOWO
- First Name
- Obafemi
- Other Names
- Jeremiah Oyeniyi
- Gender
- Male
- Source of Publication
- Who is Who In Nigeria (1978)
- Date of Birth
- March 6, 1909
- Status
- Died
- Date of Death
- May 9, 1987
- State of Origin
- Ogun
- Place of Birth
- Ikenne
- Father's Status
- N/A
- Mother's Status
- N/A
- Marital Status
- Married
- Name of Spouse
- Hannah Idowu Dideolu Awolowo
- Names of Children
- Tola Oyediran, Ayodele Soyode, Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosunmu, Oluwole Awolowo, Segun Awolowo
- Profession
- Journalist
Author
Legal Practitioner
Politician
Public Servant
Elder statesman - Working Experience
- clerk at the Wesley College Ibadan,
correspondent for the Nigerian Times.
founder the Nigerian Tribune - Education Level
- Tertiary
- Schools Attended with Dates
- Baptist Boys' High School (BBHS), Abeokuta; Wesley College, Ibadan,University of London
- Have you ever been a member of any political party?
- N/A
- Traditional Titles
- Asiwaju Awon Yoruba or Asiwaju Omo Oodua
- Other Relevant Information
- started life as a teacher, 1928-29, stenographer 1930-34, his ambition of becoming a journalist, lawyer and politician began to materialise when in 1934 he joined the Staff of the Daily Times as a reporter-in-training; on leaving the Daily times, he became a freelance journalist, engaged in motor transport and produce buying, 1936-44; it was during this period that he passed the Bachelor of Commerce degree of London Univer sity B. Com (Hons) (Lond.) as an external candidate; passed the LL.B. degree and the Bar examinations in 1946, was called to the Barthe same vear; returned to Nigeria in 1946 and became a legal practitioner 1946- 51; co-founder and first General Secretary of Egbe Omo Oduduwa, a Yoruba cultural movement in 1949, started the Nigerian Tribune, a daily newspaper which later became the organ of his party, the Action Group of Nigeria which was inaugurated as a political party on April 28,1951; was elected the party's first president — the same year was elected into the then Western House of Assembly; in 1952, became Leader of Govern ment Business and Minister of Local Government and Finance, two years later, (October 1954), assumed office as the first premier of the Western Region; was re-appointed Premier. 1956 but in 1959 resigned this post to become Leader, of the Oppositiofl in the Federal Parliament; during the political crisis in the Western Region, 1962, was placed under house arrest and was later charged along with others for plotting to overthrow the Federal Government, Nov. 1982, at the subsequent trial, was found guilty and sentenced to a ten-year term of imprisonment, wasreleased from prf son and granted full pardon inAugust 1966 when Yakubu Gowon (then Lt.-Col.) took over as Head of the Federal Military Government' in May 1967, was appointed first ChancoRor of Ife University; appointed FederaJ Commissioner for Finance and Vie* President of the Federal Executive Council June 1967 a post he held un til his resignation at the end of June 1971; led the'Western delegation tothe Lagos Ad-Hoc Constitutional Confer ence and served on that Ad-Hoc Commitee charged with finding a workable constitution for the nation; awarded Hon. LL.D. (Nsukka), Hon. D.9e. Econ. (Ife), Hon. D.Litt;, (Lagos), Hon. LL.D (Ibadan); holds chlefn taincy titles: Ashiwaju of Ijebu* Remo, Losi of Ikenne, Lisa of Ijeun, Apasin of Oshogbo, Odole of Ife, Ajagunla of Ado Ekiti, Odofln of Owo and Ohong Ikpa Isong of Ibibioland; has published many works including "Path to Nigerian Freedom" <W47), "Awo - An Autobiography" (1960) 'Thoughts on Nfgerian Constitution" (t8$6), 'The People's Republic" (1868) and "Strategy and Tactics of the People's Republic of Nigeria" (1970). Married to Hannah Idowu Dideolu and has four surviving children.
- Residential Address
- 91 Park Lane, P.O. Box 632, Apapa
- Source
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obafemi_Awolowo
Source
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obafemi_Awolowo
Last Update Thu 19, Dec 2019
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