Augustus Akhabue Aikhomu (20 October 1939 – 17 August 2011) was an

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

in the

Nigerian Navy The Nigerian Navy (NN) is a branch of the Nigerian Armed Forces. It is among the largest navies on the African continent, consisting of several thousand personnel, including those of the Coast Guard. History The Nigerian Navy owes its origin to ...

, who served as the ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

under military head of state General

Ibrahim Babangida Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (born 17 August, 1941) is a retired Nigerian Army general and politician. He served as military president of Nigeria from 1985 until his resignation in 1993. He rose through the ranks to serve from 1984 to 1985 as Ch ...

from 1986 to 1993.

Early life

He hailed from Idumebo-Irrua,

Edo State Edo, commonly known as Edo State, is a state located in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. As of 2006 National population census, the state was ranked as the 24th populated state (3,233,366) in Nigeria, However there was controversy ...

, in southern Nigeria. As a student, Aikhomu spent various periods of his early life studying at Irrua Government School,

Yaba College of Technology Yaba College of Technology, popularly known as YABATECH, was founded in 1947, and is Nigeria's first higher educational institution. It is located in Yaba, Lagos. It has a student enrollment of over 16,000. Overview Yaba College of Technology ...

, Royal Britannia Naval College in

Dartmouth, England Dartmouth () is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the England, English county of Devon. It is a tourist destination set on the western bank of the estuary of the River Dart, which is a long narrow tidal ria that runs inland ...

, Long Gunnery Specialist Course, India and the

National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Kuru, Nigeria is a policy formation center for bureaucrats, private sector leaders, Army officers, and medium-rank and senior civil servants, which was founded in 1979. Most policymaker ...

Kuru, Nigeria Kuru is located on the Jos Plateau in north-central Nigeria commonly referred as the middle belt region of Nigeria. Located about 20 km to Jos on the Jos-Abuja highway in Plateau State. Kuru is a conglomerate of other small semi - develope ...

Naval career

Aikhomu joined the Nigerian Navy on 1 December 1958. He joined the Royal Navy as an Artificer Apprentice with Series 35 entry at HMS Fisgard near Torpoint, East Cornwall in January 1959. He was in Grenville Division at HMS Fisgard and would have completed his 16 months Part 1 training at the end of April 1960. Aikhomu was the Commanding Officer, Shore Patrol Craft, commanding officer, NNS Dorina, chief of naval personnel, naval headquarters, chief of naval operations (1983–84), and chief of naval staff (1984–86).

Vice President and Chief of General Staff

Admiral Augustus served as the ''

under military president General

from 1986 to 1993.

Later career

He was at a time the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of

All Nigeria Peoples Party The All Nigeria Peoples Party (abbr. ANPP) was a political party in Nigeria. Under the leadership of Late Chief Edwin Ume-Ezeoke who was its vice presidential candidate to General Muhammadu Buhari in the 2007 presidential elections. The party ...

, an opposition party in the country. Aikhomu contributed to the Irrua Specialist Hospital specializing in

lassa fever Lassa fever, also known as Lassa hemorrhagic fever (LHF), is a type of viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus. Many of those infected by the virus do not develop symptoms. When symptoms occur they typically include fever, weakness, h ...

management. He died on 17 August 2011, aged 71. Aikhomu is survived by his wife, Rebecca, and five children,

Mark Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fi ...

, Eheje, Vinitha, Suzanne, and Ebi.

References

*
Those Who May Replace Obasanjo
1939 births 2011 deaths Vice presidents of Nigeria Nigerian Navy admirals Graduates of Britannia Royal Naval College People from Edo State Members of the Nigerian National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies Chiefs of Naval Staff (Nigeria) {{nigeria-politician-stub