Adetokunbo Ademola
| The Right Honourable Omoba Sir Adetokunbo Ademola PC, SAN | |
|---|---|
| 2nd Chief Justice of Nigeria | |
| In office 1958–1972 | |
| Preceded by | Stafford Foster-Sutton |
| Succeeded by | Taslim Olawale Elias |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 1, 1906 |
| Died | January 29, 1993 (aged 86) |
Sir Adetokunbo Adegboyega Ademola, KBE, GCON, PC, SAN (1 February 1906 - 29 January 1993) was a Nigerian jurist, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, and son of King Ladapo Ademola II, paramount leader as the Alake of the Egba clan of Nigeria.
Early life & Education
Sir Adetokunbo was born into royalty as the son of the Alake of Egbaland, Ademola II, who reigned in Abeokuta, a historic walled city of the Egbas in south-western Nigeria. He got his secondary education at St Gregory's Grammar School Obalende and King's College Lagos.[1] Sir Adetokunbo studied law at Selwyn College, University of Cambridge from 1928 to 1931. From 1958 to 1972, he served as Chief Justice. He married the former Miss Kofo Moore, who obtained a BA at Oxford and was daughter of the late Eric Moore, first Lagos member of the United nations committee of experts advising on labor conventions and regulations.[2]
Career Details
Sir Adetokunbo was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in London in 1934. After returning to Nigeria, he worked from 1934-35 as crown counsel at the then Attorney- General's Office, then for a year as assistant secretary at the southern secretariat in Enugu, Eastern Nigeria. From 1936, Sir Adetokunbo practiced until 1939, when he was appointed Magistrate of the Protectorate Court. In 1949 he became the third Nigerian to be appointed a puisne judge. In 1948 he served as a member of the commission for the revision of court legislation.
In 1955, a year before western Nigeria became internally self-governing, Sir Adetokunbo was appointed Chief Justice for Western Nigeria, thus becoming the first Nigerian head of the judiciary anywhere in Nigeria. His string of 'firsts' continued when, three years later, he became the first Nigerian Chief Justice of the entire Federation of Nigeria.
Sir Adetokunbo, along with Dr. Teslim Olawale Elias (who succeeded him as Chief Justice of Nigeria) was instrumental in the establishment of the Nigerian Law School. Prior to its establishment, legal practitioners had had to qualify at the English Bar.[3]
Knighthood, Honours & Memberships
Adetokunbo Ademola was a prince of the Yoruba people, and thus often made use of the pre-nominal honorific Omoba. He was first knighted in January, 1957, and in 1963 was appointed a member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom. Later that year, Queen Elizabeth II awarded him a K.B.E.. By serving as Chief Justice of Nigeria, Sir Ademtokunbo was conferred with the title Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) by the federal government of the Republic of Nigeria.
Sir Adetokunbo was also a member of the United Nations International Public Service Advisory Board, member of the International commission of Jurists, executive member of World peace through Law, vice president of the World Association of Jurists, president of the Nigerian Red Cross Association, chairman of Nigeria Cheshire homes, member of the International Olympic committee, member of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs and president of the Reformed Ogboni Fraternity.
In addition to all of this, he was both one of the founders and eventual chairman of the Metropolitan Club, a founding member of the Island Club and vice patron of the Yoruba Club.
References
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