Abraham Adesanya
Encyclopedia
Abraham Aderibigbe Adesanya (July 24, 1922 in Ijebu Igbo
- 27 April 2008) was a Nigeria
n politician, lawyer, activist, welfarist, aristocrat and liberal progressive. He was the son of a famous and powerful traditional healer, the late Oloye Ezekiel Adesanya aka Baba Obu’keagbo who lived between the 19th and 20th centuries.
Grammar School after which he worked as a teacher before travelling to United Kingdom
to study law at the then Holborn College of Law.
as a qualified lawyer and joined the Action Group
led by Obafemi Awolowo
. The same year, he was nominated and eventually elected to the defunct Western House of Assembly to represent Ijebu Igbo
constituency in the December 12, 1959 House of Representatives Election.
Having qualified as an ambassador of the Action Group
's core social democratic ideals, he secured another nomination to the second republic Senate. He was said to have preferred his senatorial appointment to the Governorship ticket that was originally offered him by the Unity Party of Nigeria, a successor to the Action Group. This principle was to be further justified in the roles played by him in the effort to re-define Nigerian politics and Nigerian democracy.
He was a religious Awoist. He led a team of lawyers that defended Chief Obafemi Awolowo against the Nigerian Federal Government's exaggerated charges of treason in 1962.
and Adekunle Ajasin
, Adesanya assumed the honourific title ' Asiwaju of Yorubaland ' and simultaneously became more active politically, allying with Bola Ige
(Ayo Adebanjo, Ganiyu Dawodu
, and Bola Tinubu to fight their way to victory in six states of the defunct Western region, with their political party, Alliance for Democracy
(AD).
Later, Adesanya under the auspices of Afenifere
and the Yoruba
council of Elders, alongside others led a congress of Yoruba elder-statesmen through a congress that rose to pronounce that the convocation of a constitutional conference, where new confederating terms would be determined for the country, was inevitable for the good of Nigerians.
Adesanya was the deputy leader of National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), a pro-democracy movement formed in 1994.
fled the country on exile, but Abraham Adesanya remained at home solidly behind the Nigerian masses alongside others like late Gani Fawehinmi
, Femi Falana, Olisa Agbakoba and a host of others to achieve victory which came gradually - first when IBB bowed out of their way in 1993 - a period that saw Adesanya acting as the mouthpiece of Nigerians, persistently condemning the General Ibrahim Babangida’s (IBB) annulment of June 12 Presidential election won by late Chief MKO Abiola and second, when General Sanni Abacha attempted to transform from a military head of state to a civilian president - a period Adesanya firmly stood his position as a pro-democracy activist and a progressively minded politician, siding with Nigerians and ardently opposed to Abacha’s ideas, and lastly when in 1999, democracy was eventually ushered in. These feats saw him and the group he led for five eventful years rise to the international limelight in reported news and commentaries.
Late Abraham Adesanya, like many other world class leaders also suffered persecutions during his political life on many fronts. For instance, at his country home; he suffered persecutions for not accepting the governorship position which his people in his native Ijebu
land had deemed more beneficial to them than his personal choice of senate. But history will find justification in the fact that rather than enforcing draconian laws as a governor, reticent but tactful campaigner Adesanya was more interested in encouraging and legislating friendly, home-cooked laws for his people and the generality of Nigerians - a people just emancipated from the shackles of colonial rule and two post colonial rule military aberrations. On the leadership front, his Yoruba and Afenifere
leaderships were heavily burdened by contentions from his opponents’ tiny quarters, but he left no one of them in doubt that he was truly in charge with the strong character of honesty and consistency as-well-as pragmatic approach he often adopted in handling issues.
On Tuesday 14th of January, 1997, his uncompromising stance to the military misrule led to an attempt on his life at the behest of the then head of state, General Sanni Abacha. Adesanya had just left his law chambers on the faithful day sitting at the back of his car when an unknown team of assailants (later unveiled to be General Sanni Abacha's killer squad) struck. The front and back screens of his Mercedes Benz car were shattered and his seat riddled with pellets from the rain of bullets but he escaped unhurt with his driver. The car was later transferred to a Lagos museum.
He died on the 27th of April 2008 while having lunch at the ripe age of 85.
Since his death, he has been immortalised in several ways, especially by the six South-Western states of Lagos
, Oyo
, Ogun
, Ondo
, Osun and Ekiti.
Ijebu Igbo
Ijebu Igbo is a town in Ogun State, Nigeria. It is approximately a 15-minute drive north of Ijebu Ode.Ijebu Igbo also written as Ijebu-Igbo , it is the headquarter of Ijebu North Local Government Authority , of Ogun state , Nigeria.Its geographical coordinates are Latitude 6° 58' 0" North, and...
- 27 April 2008) was a 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...
n politician, lawyer, activist, welfarist, aristocrat and liberal progressive. He was the son of a famous and powerful traditional healer, the late Oloye Ezekiel Adesanya aka Baba Obu’keagbo who lived between the 19th and 20th centuries.
Education
Adesanya attended Ijebu OdeIjebu Ode
Ijebu Ode is a Local Government Area and city located in south-western Nigeria, close to the A121 highway. The city is located 110 km by road north-east of Lagos; it is within 100 km of the Atlantic Ocean in the eastern part of Ogun State and possesses a warm tropical climate.With an...
Grammar School after which he worked as a teacher before travelling to United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
to study law at the then Holborn College of Law.
Early Political Life
In 1959, Adesanya returned to NigeriaNigeria
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...
as a qualified lawyer and joined the Action Group
Action group
In sociology and anthropology, an action group or task group is a group of people joined temporarily to accomplish some task or take part in some organized collective action....
led by Obafemi Awolowo
Obafemi Awolowo
Jeremiah Obafemi Awolowo was a Nigerian politician, trade unionist, author and statesman. A Yoruba and native of Ikenne in Ogun State of Nigeria, he started his career as a regional political leader like most of his pre-independence contemporaries and was responsible for much of the progressive...
. The same year, he was nominated and eventually elected to the defunct Western House of Assembly to represent Ijebu Igbo
Ijebu Igbo
Ijebu Igbo is a town in Ogun State, Nigeria. It is approximately a 15-minute drive north of Ijebu Ode.Ijebu Igbo also written as Ijebu-Igbo , it is the headquarter of Ijebu North Local Government Authority , of Ogun state , Nigeria.Its geographical coordinates are Latitude 6° 58' 0" North, and...
constituency in the December 12, 1959 House of Representatives Election.
Having qualified as an ambassador of the Action Group
Action group
In sociology and anthropology, an action group or task group is a group of people joined temporarily to accomplish some task or take part in some organized collective action....
's core social democratic ideals, he secured another nomination to the second republic Senate. He was said to have preferred his senatorial appointment to the Governorship ticket that was originally offered him by the Unity Party of Nigeria, a successor to the Action Group. This principle was to be further justified in the roles played by him in the effort to re-define Nigerian politics and Nigerian democracy.
He was a religious Awoist. He led a team of lawyers that defended Chief Obafemi Awolowo against the Nigerian Federal Government's exaggerated charges of treason in 1962.
As a Leader and Activist
In the aftermath of the deaths of Obafemi AwolowoObafemi Awolowo
Jeremiah Obafemi Awolowo was a Nigerian politician, trade unionist, author and statesman. A Yoruba and native of Ikenne in Ogun State of Nigeria, he started his career as a regional political leader like most of his pre-independence contemporaries and was responsible for much of the progressive...
and Adekunle Ajasin
Michael Adekunle Ajasin
Michael Adekunle Ajasin is a Nigerian politician who was elected Governor of Ondo State on the Unity Party of Nigeria platform during the Nigerian Second Republic.-Background:...
, Adesanya assumed the honourific title ' Asiwaju of Yorubaland ' and simultaneously became more active politically, allying with 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...
(Ayo Adebanjo, Ganiyu Dawodu
Ganiyu Dawodu
Ganiyu Olawale Dawodu popularly known as G.O.D. in Lagos, was a Nigerian politician and democracy activist. He was a leading member of the National Democratic Coalition popularly known as NADECO in Nigeria during the reign of Sani Abacha...
, and Bola Tinubu to fight their way to victory in six states of the defunct Western region, with their political party, 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).
Later, Adesanya under the auspices of 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,...
and the Yoruba
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
council of Elders, alongside others led a congress of Yoruba elder-statesmen through a congress that rose to pronounce that the convocation of a constitutional conference, where new confederating terms would be determined for the country, was inevitable for the good of Nigerians.
Adesanya was the deputy leader of National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), a pro-democracy movement formed in 1994.
Turbulence and victory
At the peak of military persecution, many of the then pro-democracy activists, including his leader in NADECO, Chief Anthony EnahoroAnthony Enahoro
Chief Anthony Enahoro, was Nigeria’s foremost anti-colonial and pro-democracy activists. He was born the eldest of twelve children in Uromi in the present Edo State of Nigeria. His Esan parents were Anastasius Okotako Enahoro and Fidelia Inibokun née Ogbidi Okojie...
fled the country on exile, but Abraham Adesanya remained at home solidly behind the Nigerian masses alongside others like late Gani Fawehinmi
Gani Fawehinmi
Chief Abdul-Ganiyu "Gani" Oyesola Fawehinmi, was a Nigerian author, publisher, philanthropist, social critic, human and civil rights lawyer, politician and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria .-Early life:Fawehinmi, popularly called Gani, was born on 22 April 1938, into the Fawehinmi...
, Femi Falana, Olisa Agbakoba and a host of others to achieve victory which came gradually - first when IBB bowed out of their way in 1993 - a period that saw Adesanya acting as the mouthpiece of Nigerians, persistently condemning the General Ibrahim Babangida’s (IBB) annulment of June 12 Presidential election won by late Chief MKO Abiola and second, when General Sanni Abacha attempted to transform from a military head of state to a civilian president - a period Adesanya firmly stood his position as a pro-democracy activist and a progressively minded politician, siding with Nigerians and ardently opposed to Abacha’s ideas, and lastly when in 1999, democracy was eventually ushered in. These feats saw him and the group he led for five eventful years rise to the international limelight in reported news and commentaries.
Late Abraham Adesanya, like many other world class leaders also suffered persecutions during his political life on many fronts. For instance, at his country home; he suffered persecutions for not accepting the governorship position which his people in his native Ijebu
Ijebu
Ijebu was a Yoruba kingdom in pre-colonial Nigeria. It formed around the fifteenth century. According to legend, its ruling dynasty was founded by Obanta of Ile-Ife...
land had deemed more beneficial to them than his personal choice of senate. But history will find justification in the fact that rather than enforcing draconian laws as a governor, reticent but tactful campaigner Adesanya was more interested in encouraging and legislating friendly, home-cooked laws for his people and the generality of Nigerians - a people just emancipated from the shackles of colonial rule and two post colonial rule military aberrations. On the leadership front, his Yoruba and 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,...
leaderships were heavily burdened by contentions from his opponents’ tiny quarters, but he left no one of them in doubt that he was truly in charge with the strong character of honesty and consistency as-well-as pragmatic approach he often adopted in handling issues.
On Tuesday 14th of January, 1997, his uncompromising stance to the military misrule led to an attempt on his life at the behest of the then head of state, General Sanni Abacha. Adesanya had just left his law chambers on the faithful day sitting at the back of his car when an unknown team of assailants (later unveiled to be General Sanni Abacha's killer squad) struck. The front and back screens of his Mercedes Benz car were shattered and his seat riddled with pellets from the rain of bullets but he escaped unhurt with his driver. The car was later transferred to a Lagos museum.
Illness and death
Before Adesanya later became incapacitated by illness which confined him to his Lagos Apapa residence and made his role appreciably gravitate to advisory on important matters affecting Yoruba and Afenifere only; the two leadership caps he unarguably wore till his death, his fame travelled wide and far among Nigerians and non-Nigerians for his pro-democracy activities in Nigeria.He died on the 27th of April 2008 while having lunch at the ripe age of 85.
Since his death, he has been immortalised in several ways, especially by the six South-Western states of Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
, Oyo
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....
, Ogun
Ogun State
Ogun State is a state in South-western Nigeria. It borders Lagos State to the South, Oyo and Osun states to the North, Ondo State to the east and the republic of Benin to the west. Abeokuta is the capital and largest city in the state...
, Ondo
Ondo State
Ondo State, Nigeria was created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State. It originally included what is now Ekiti State, which was split off in 1996. Akure is the state capital.-Government and society:...
, Osun and Ekiti.