Adegoke Adelabu

Gbadamosi Adegoke Adelabu (3 September 1915 – 20 March 1958) was a Nigerian politician. He was a self-made man born into a humble family, but became an influential figure in Nigerian politics. He attended Government College, Ibadan and eventually became a business man. His successful political career was cut short when he was killed in a car crash, not long before Nigeria gained independence from Britain.

Early life

He was almost the first beneficiary of a scholarship given by the United Africa Company Nigeria (UAC) for outstanding ability, the first Nigerian to occupy the position of manager at UAC and the first chairman of the Ibadan District Council. He was also a member of the Western Region House of Assembly and served as the federal Minister of Social Services and Mineral Resources. He was also a salesman, a merchant, a writer and a journalist.

Political strongman

Chief Adegoke "Penkelemesi" Adelabu was a fiercely independent-minded man who refused to be swayed by the herd mentality, and the politics of tribe and personality which governed politics in the Yorùbá-dominated Western Region of Nigeria in the 1950s; centered in Ibadan. As one of the leading Ibadan politician of his time, he championed the cause of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) led by Nnamdi Azikiwe. He co-founded the Ibadan Peoples Party (IPP) with Chief Adisa Akinloye who later became his rival till death and was instrumental in the formation of the Ibadan Taxpayers Association. Adegoke Adelabu, described as the colossal figure in Ibadan between 1951 and 1958, became the leader of opposition in the western region house of assembly. At the time of his death he had already married 12 times and had 15 children.

Peculiar mess

Adegoke Adelabu is often mentioned in Yorùbá and Nigerian history, almost nearly in parentheses as the author of that expression: "penkelemesi", a Yorubanisation of the phrase, "peculiar mess" which Adelabu, known for his deep knowledge of English, had used on an occasion to describe the opposition in the Western Region House of Assembly. Not understanding what he meant, the non-literate section of his audience translated the phrase into vernacular as "penkelemesi".

References

Some facts and excerpts were drawn from the book: Africa in Ebullition by Adegoke Adelabu; published by Jericho Business Club; Lagos; 2005.