Adebisi Akande
Encyclopedia
Abdukareem Adebisi Bamidele Akande ("Bisi Akande"") was a governor of Osun State
, Nigeria
from 1999-2003, as a member of the Alliance for Democracy
(AD) party, and is Chairman of the Action Congress
party.
Akande was deputy governor of Oyo State
between 1979 and 1983 when Bola Ige
was governor (Osun State was formerly part of Oyo State
).
He was elected on the Unity Party of Nigeria
(UPN) platform.
Akande was described as the nephew of Chief Bola Ige.
socio-cultural organization Afenifere
.
He succeeded Col. Theophilus Bamigboye
, who had been named as the military administrator of the State in August 1998, and who handed over power on 29 May 1999.
On 31 May 1999 Adebisa Akande inaugurated the second Assembly in Osun State.
In January 2000, the Osun State government sacked 143 staff of the Osun State Broadcasting Corporation, following the governor’s earlier vow to trim the state’s work force.
Adebisi Akande dissolved the state Council of Obas and Chiefs in 2001, on the ground that it was too large. The dissolution may have been caused by a dispute between the then head of the royal council, the Ooni of Ile-Ife and Akande, in turn part of a face-off between Akande and the deputy governor, Iyiola Omisore
.
A November 2001 appraisal of Osun State said that Adebisi Akande was battling an unfriendly work force, and the state was also troubled by long-standing violence between the Ife
and Modakeke
clans. However, Akande had implemented his party's programs for providing free education and free medical care, and had improved water supplies.
A different appraisal, two months later, noting the governor had recently survived an impeachment attempt, said that rather than improving social services and generating employment, after two years in power Akande had implemented massive staff lay offs in the public service, and had caused virtual collapse of public infrastructure.
On December 24, 2001, Akande's supporter Bola Ige
, the minister of justice, was murdered in his house in Ibadan
.
The newspaper This Day said that the murder could have been linked to the feud between Akande and the deputy governor Iyiola Omisore
. The murder followed another murder the previous week of Osun State legislator Odunayo Olagbaju
, who was bludgeoned to death outside his home. Olagbaju was a supporter of Omisore.
Adebisa Akande ran again for election in 2003, but was defeated by Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola of the People's Democratic Party
(PDP).
In January 2006, the convoy of AD leaders who supported Chief Mojisoluwa Akinfenwa faction instead of Chief Adebisi Akande as the party's national chairman was attacked by thugs in Osogbo
, the capital of Osun State.
In a February 2006 interview, former Senator Moji Akinfenwa
verbally attacked Akande and denied that he was head of the AD. Discussing Akande's feud with his deputy, Iyiola Omisore, he acknowledged that most of the funding for Akande’s governorship campaign was donated by Omisore, but said it was a serious error to have accepted him as a running mate.
In June 2005, Akande attended an International Conference on Sustainable Democracy in Nigeria held at the Imperial College, London
.
In October 2005, Akande visited the USA to meet with AD supporters in the Nigerian diaspora.
Speaking in July 2006, Akande attacked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
, which he implied was not acting impartially. He defended the AD, which he said was stronger even than it had been in 1999. He called for a more decentralized, federal form of government.
Speaking in February 2009, Akande said the only solution to hostage-taking in the Niger Delta area was to give youths employment opportunities, and to involve them in decision making. He cautioned against a military solution, saying in the past the military had looted the nation's treasury and impoverished the people. Speaking in favour of democracy, he stated that when the AD governors accepted President Olusegun Obasanjo's request to avoid local council polls, they fell into a trap. Obasanjo was able to select delegates who helped him win the 2003 elections.
In October 2009, the Osun State Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Jelili Adesiyan, blamed the poor performance of Osun State students in examinations on the administration of Chief Adebisi Akande, whom he asserted had neglected the schools.
Osun State
Ọṣun State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria. Its capital is Osogbo. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east partly by Ekiti State and partly by Ondo State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west by Oyo State. The state's current governor is Rauf Aregbesola, who was...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
from 1999-2003, as a member of the Alliance for Democracy
Alliance for Democracy (Nigeria)
The Alliance for Democracy was a progressive opposition political party in Nigeria. It was formed on September 9th 1998. At the 2003 legislative elections, 12 April 2003, the party won 8.8 % of the popular vote and 34 out of 360 seats in the Nigerian House of Representatives and six out of...
(AD) party, and is Chairman of the Action Congress
Action Congress
The Action Congress of Nigeria , formerly known as Action Congress , is a classical liberal Nigerian political party formed via the merger of the Alliance for Democracy, the Justice Party, the Advance Congress of Democrats, and several other minor political parties in September 2006. The party...
party.
Background
Chief Adebisi Akande was born in Ila Orangun on 23 January 1939 in what is now the Osun Central Senatorial district.Akande was deputy governor of Oyo State
Oyo State
Ọyọ State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria, with its capital at Ibadan. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east by Osun State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west partly by Ogun State and partly by the Republic of Benin....
between 1979 and 1983 when Bola Ige
Bola Ige
James Ajibola Idowu Ige simply known as Bola Ige was a Nigerian lawyer and politician. He became Federal Minister of Justice for Nigeria...
was governor (Osun State was formerly part of Oyo State
Oyo State
Ọyọ State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria, with its capital at Ibadan. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east by Osun State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west partly by Ogun State and partly by the Republic of Benin....
).
He was elected on the Unity Party of Nigeria
Unity Party of Nigeria
The Unity Party of Nigeria was a Nigerian political party that was dominant in western Nigeria during the second republic. The party revolved around the political leadership of Obafemi Awolowo, a sometimes polemical but effective administrator. However, the party's main difference with its...
(UPN) platform.
Akande was described as the nephew of Chief Bola Ige.
Governorship
Adebisa Akande was elected governor of Osun State in April 1999, running for the Alliance for Democracy (AD) party, which had recently formed as a political arm of the YorubaYoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
socio-cultural organization Afenifere
Afenifere
Afenifere was formed as a socio-cultural organization for the Yoruba people of Nigeria, with Abraham Adesanya as its leader and Chief Bola Ige as deputy leader. Other founding members were Pa Onasanya, Chief Reuben Fasoranti, Adegbonmire, Okurounmu Femi, Ganiyu Dawodu, Olanihun Ajayi, Olu Falae,...
.
He succeeded Col. Theophilus Bamigboye
Theophilus Bamigboye
Theophilus O Bamigboye is a retired Nigerian Colonel who served as Military Administrator of Bauchi State and then Osun State before the return to democracy in May 1999...
, who had been named as the military administrator of the State in August 1998, and who handed over power on 29 May 1999.
On 31 May 1999 Adebisa Akande inaugurated the second Assembly in Osun State.
In January 2000, the Osun State government sacked 143 staff of the Osun State Broadcasting Corporation, following the governor’s earlier vow to trim the state’s work force.
Adebisi Akande dissolved the state Council of Obas and Chiefs in 2001, on the ground that it was too large. The dissolution may have been caused by a dispute between the then head of the royal council, the Ooni of Ile-Ife and Akande, in turn part of a face-off between Akande and the deputy governor, Iyiola Omisore
Iyiola Omisore
Iyiola Omisore, alias Otunba, is a Nigerian politician who served as deputy governor of Osun State from 1999–2003, and represented the People's Democratic Party as a member of the Nigerian Senate for Osun East from 2003–2009, when his election was annulled by an electoral appeal...
.
A November 2001 appraisal of Osun State said that Adebisi Akande was battling an unfriendly work force, and the state was also troubled by long-standing violence between the Ife
Ife
Ife is an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria. Evidence of inhabitation at the site has been discovered to date back to roughly 560 BC...
and Modakeke
Modakeke
Modakeke is a town in Osun State, South West Nigeria, with a population of close to three hundred thousand people.The Modakekes are also known as the "Akoraye" and have a history of valor at war and are prosperous farmers.- History :...
clans. However, Akande had implemented his party's programs for providing free education and free medical care, and had improved water supplies.
A different appraisal, two months later, noting the governor had recently survived an impeachment attempt, said that rather than improving social services and generating employment, after two years in power Akande had implemented massive staff lay offs in the public service, and had caused virtual collapse of public infrastructure.
On December 24, 2001, Akande's supporter Bola Ige
Bola Ige
James Ajibola Idowu Ige simply known as Bola Ige was a Nigerian lawyer and politician. He became Federal Minister of Justice for Nigeria...
, the minister of justice, was murdered in his house in Ibadan
Ibadan
Ibadan is the capital city of Oyo State and the third largest metropolitan area in Nigeria, after Lagos and Kano, with a population of 1,338,659 according to the 2006 census. Ibadan is also the largest metropolitan geographical area...
.
The newspaper This Day said that the murder could have been linked to the feud between Akande and the deputy governor Iyiola Omisore
Iyiola Omisore
Iyiola Omisore, alias Otunba, is a Nigerian politician who served as deputy governor of Osun State from 1999–2003, and represented the People's Democratic Party as a member of the Nigerian Senate for Osun East from 2003–2009, when his election was annulled by an electoral appeal...
. The murder followed another murder the previous week of Osun State legislator Odunayo Olagbaju
Odunayo Olagbaju
Odunayo Omobolanle Olagbaju was a Nigerian politician who was an Osun State legislator. He was stabbed to death in December 2001. In May 2002, eleven suspects were arraigned for the killing. In August, seven additional suspects were arrested...
, who was bludgeoned to death outside his home. Olagbaju was a supporter of Omisore.
Adebisa Akande ran again for election in 2003, but was defeated by Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola of the People's Democratic Party
People's Democratic Party (Nigeria)
The People's Democratic Party is a political party in Nigeria. Its policies generally lie towards the right wing of the political spectrum. It has won every single Presidential elections since 1999, namely: 1999, 2003, 2007, and 2011, and is the dominant party in the Fourth Republic.-History:In...
(PDP).
Later career
In late 2003, rival factions of the AD held separate conventions. In the Lagos convention, Adebisi Akande was elected as AD chairman.In January 2006, the convoy of AD leaders who supported Chief Mojisoluwa Akinfenwa faction instead of Chief Adebisi Akande as the party's national chairman was attacked by thugs in Osogbo
Osogbo
Osogbo is a city in Nigeria, the capital of Osun State and a Local Government Area.The Local Government Area has an area of 47 km² and a population of 156,694 at the 2006 census; the postal code of the area is 230.-Infrastructure and demographics:Osogbo lies on the railway line from Lagos to...
, the capital of Osun State.
In a February 2006 interview, former Senator Moji Akinfenwa
Moji Akinfenwa
Mojisoluwa O Akinfenwa was elected Senator for the Osun East constituency of Osun State, Nigeria at the start of the Nigerian Fourth Republic, running on the Alliance for Democracy platform...
verbally attacked Akande and denied that he was head of the AD. Discussing Akande's feud with his deputy, Iyiola Omisore, he acknowledged that most of the funding for Akande’s governorship campaign was donated by Omisore, but said it was a serious error to have accepted him as a running mate.
In June 2005, Akande attended an International Conference on Sustainable Democracy in Nigeria held at the Imperial College, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
In October 2005, Akande visited the USA to meet with AD supporters in the Nigerian diaspora.
Speaking in July 2006, Akande attacked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is a Nigerian law enforcement agency that investigates financial crimes such as advance fee fraud and money laundering...
, which he implied was not acting impartially. He defended the AD, which he said was stronger even than it had been in 1999. He called for a more decentralized, federal form of government.
Speaking in February 2009, Akande said the only solution to hostage-taking in the Niger Delta area was to give youths employment opportunities, and to involve them in decision making. He cautioned against a military solution, saying in the past the military had looted the nation's treasury and impoverished the people. Speaking in favour of democracy, he stated that when the AD governors accepted President Olusegun Obasanjo's request to avoid local council polls, they fell into a trap. Obasanjo was able to select delegates who helped him win the 2003 elections.
In October 2009, the Osun State Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Jelili Adesiyan, blamed the poor performance of Osun State students in examinations on the administration of Chief Adebisi Akande, whom he asserted had neglected the schools.