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By Funsho Arogundade
Lucky Orimisan Aiyedatiwa has made many appointments as the Chief Executive of Ondo State. But one appointment he was spot-on was the choice of Olukayode Abraham Ajulo as his Chief Law Officer. For Governor Aiyedatiwa, Ajulo is one egghead he needs to help him succeed in managing the affairs of the good people of Ondo. And since his February 2024 appointment, this young, vibrant Senior Advocate of Nigeria has proven not only to his principal but all that his appointment as the State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice is not a hoax.
As a testimony to that, in January when the Governor dissolved his entire cabinet, he exempted Ajulo and one other commissioner from the dissolution because of the critical nature of their duties. Indeed, it is doubtful whether anyone can still impugn the relevance of the Akoko-born legal luminary to the state, particularly the governor, following his recent victory at the Supreme Court. As the state’s Attorney General, Ajulo had totally immersed himself in the multiple legal battles involving his principal from the State High Court to the Supreme Court over the 2024 governorship election battle in the state. Aware of the enormity of the legal tussle, Ajulo, in his capacity as the Chief Legal Adviser to the governor, successfully engaged and assembled some of the best legal minds in the country to defend his principal. And the end result was epic.
Though the recent development has boosted his profile, it is incontestable that Ajulo had already made a name for himself in the nation’s legal firmament. His standards are sky-high, and he does not compromise, no matter whose ox is gored. He is, without a doubt, one of the silent wealthy lawyers in Nigeria, yet Ajulo is the kind of man whose values aren’t shaped by convenience but by conviction. Perhaps this explains the mixed feelings that greeted the acceptance of his current portfolio. Many of his admirers had expressed concerns that his success story as a lawyer towers above the status of a State’s Attorney General. But today, Governor Aiyedatiwa’s multiple success stands as a testament to the strategic choices of Ajulo —a recipient of the national award of the Officer of the Order of the Niger, OON— as well as his political acumen: two qualities his colleagues need to emulate to ensure success in their undertakings.
