Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke (15 January 1955 – 23 April 2017) was a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, ...

, he was a two time senator who represented Osun West from 2007 to 2011 under the

People's Democratic Party People's Democratic Party or ''variant thereof'', could refer to: * People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan *People's Democratic Party (Belize) *People's Democratic Party (Bhutan) * People's Democratic Party (Chile) *People's Democratic Party (Dom ...

(PDP) and was elected again under the banner of the

All Progressives Congress The All Progressives Congress (APC) is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Nigeria, along with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Founded on 6 February 2013 from a merger of Nigeria's three largest opposition parties, the ...

in 2015. He ran for re-election in April 2011 on the PDP platform, coming second with 77,090 votes behind the eventual winner Mudasiru Oyetunde Hussein of the

Action Congress of Nigeria The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), formerly known as Action Congress (AC), was a Nigerian political party formed via the merger of a faction of Alliance for Democracy, the Justice Party, the Advance Congress of Democrats, and several othe ...

(ACN) who polled 121,971 votes.

Background

Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke was born on the 15th January, 1955 to the family of senator Ayoola Adeleke and Esther Adeleke. He was born in

Enugu State Enugu State ( ig, Ȯra Enugu) is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north by the states of Benue and Kogi, Ebonyi State to the east and southeast, Abia State to the south, and Anambra State to the west. ...

and spent his early years in the city until the beginning of the

Nigerian civil war The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence ...

. He started his primary education at Christ Church School, Enugu, before moving to Ibadan. He completed his secondary education at Ogbomoso Grammar School. Adeleke holds a Bachelor Of Arts degree, and a master's degree in

public administration Public Administration (a form of governance) or Public Policy and Administration (an academic discipline) is the implementation of public policy, administration of government establishment ( public governance), management of non-profit es ...

. He was chairman, Governing Council, Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Pro-chancellor and Chairman, Governing Council,

University of Calabar The University of Calabar is a public university situated in Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria. It is one of Nigeria's second generation federal universities. The University of Calabar was a campus of the University of Nigeria until 1975. Th ...

, Nigeria. He was the uncle to Nigerian musician,

Davido David Adedeji Adeleke (born November 21, 1992), popularly known by his stage name Davido, is an American-Nigerian singer, songwriter and record producer. His music blends traditional African elements with global mainstream pop. Davido is widel ...

Political career

200px, Osun State, Nigeria During the

Nigerian third republic The Third Republic was the planned republican government of Nigeria in 1993 which was to be governed by the Third Republican constitution. Founded (1993) The constitution of the Third Republic was drafted in 1989. General Ibrahim Badamasi ...

, Adeleke ran for governor of the newly created

Osun State Osun State (; yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Ọ̀ṣun), occasionally known as the State of Osun by the state government, is a state in southwestern Nigeria; bounded to the east by Ekiti and Ondo states, to the north by Kwara State, to the south by Og ...

which was carved out from

Oyo State Oyo State is an inland state in southwestern Nigeria. Its capital is Ibadan, the third most populous city in the country and formerly the second most populous city in Africa. Oyo State is bordered to the north by Kwara State, to the east by Os ...

. He was a member of SDP the dominant party in the state. The front runner was a lawyer, Oladipo Oladosu but after a close primary in which Adeleke came second, Adeleke was able to win a runoff. He was then elected the first civilian governor of

in 1992. Notable decisions made by Adeleke was the establishment of a polytechnic at

Iree Iree (also Ire or Iree Alalubosa) is a Yoruba town in the north-eastern part of Osun State, Nigeria, West Africa. Its geographical coordinates are 7.55 North and East. Iree is one of the major towns in the Boripe Local Government Area of Osun Sta ...

, a college of technology at

Esa-Oke Esa-Oke is a Yoruba town located at the Obokun Local Government Area of the Ijesa North Federal Constituency of Ife/Ijesa Senatorial District of Osun State, South-West of Nigeria. It is a native Ijesa (Ijesha) community and shares boundaries w ...

and the completion of the Osun State Broadcasting Corporation. However, in 1994, after the dissolution of the republic, Adeleke pitched its tent to the opposition group,

Afenifere Afenifere was formed as a socio-cultural organization for the Yoruba people of Nigeria, with Chief Abraham Adesanya as its leader and Chief Bola Ige as deputy leader. Other founding members were Pa Onasanya, Chief Reuben Fasoranti, Adegbonmire, Oku ...

but later switched to join a Democratic Party of Nigeria, a new political party with support from close associates of

Abacha Abacha is a town in Anambra State in the southeastern part of Nigeria. It is bordered by Abatete, Nimo, Oraukwu and Eziowelle Eziowelle is a town in Idemili North local government area of Anambra State, Nigeria. Eziowelle translates into En ...

. In 2007, Adeleke was elected senator for Osun West. His main competitor was Mudasiru Oyetunde Hussein, standing for the

Action Congress The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), formerly known as Action Congress (AC), was a Nigerian political party formed via the merger of a faction of Alliance for Democracy, the Justice Party, the Advance Congress of Democrats, and several other ...

. Hussein had spent two terms in the House of Representatives (1999–2007) as a member of the Alliance for Democracy party in a

Lagos State Lagos State ( yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Èkó) is a state in southwestern Nigeria. Of the 36 states, it is both the most populous and smallest in area. Bounded to the south by the Bight of Benin and to the west by the international border with Benin ...

constituency, but originated from Osun state. Hussein appealed the election unsuccessfully. Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke was appointed to committees on Upstream Petroleum Resources, Integration and Cooperation, Housing and

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...

. In March 2008, he instituted a scholarship award for about 100 indigent students in tertiary institutions across the country. In July 2009, as chairman of the Senate Committee on INEC, Senator Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke praised the work of the

Independent National Electoral Commission The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was established in 1998 and is the electoral body which oversees elections in Nigeria. History Regulation and administration of elections The administration of democratic elections in Nige ...

, saying "so far INEC has performed creditably well". He has supported the rights of Nigerians living abroad to vote in Nigerian elections. Adeleke, before his death was allegedly eyeing the governorship seat in Osun ahead of the 2018 election in the state.

Death

Senator Adeleke suffered a heart attack. He died on 23 April 2017 at Biket Hospital in

Osogbo Osogbo (also ''Oṣogbo'', rarely ''Oshogbo'') is a city in Nigeria. It became the capital city of Osun State in 1991. Osogbo city seats the Headquarters of both Osogbo Local Government Area (situated at Oke Baale Area of the city) and Oloru ...

, the

capital.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adeleke, Isiaka 1955 births 2017 deaths Governors of Osun State Yoruba politicians Peoples Democratic Party members of the Senate (Nigeria) People from Osun State Alliance for Democracy (Nigeria) politicians Members of the House of Representatives (Nigeria) University of Calabar people Isiaka