Akeem Lasisi
In a dispensation many politicians are struggling tooth and nail to become even counsellors, one Lagos boy called Femi Gbajabiamila has been a national lawmaker for 20 years. He has, indeed, been a Speaker in the House that wields a lot of influence, funds and mileage. Now, as if the Fourth Republic was made first and foremost for his destiny, he has just been unveiled as the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu.
Most hands had been pointing towards him for some time. But Tinubu, on Friday, halted all speculations in Abuja by revealing Gbajabiamila, the Igbobi Boy and the UNILAG Boy is the apple of his eyes for the very strategic post. If where Gbajabiamila, who is not known to have major political influence before 1999/2003, ‘picked’ his own Head (ayanmo/destiny), many politicians would, therefore, do everything possible to get there and replace theirs too.
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Olufemi “Femi” Hakeem Gbajabiamila was born on 25 June 1962 to Lateef Gbajabiamila and Olufunke Gbajabiamila in Lagos. He attended Mainland Preparatory School for elementary education and Igbobi College in 1973, where he completed his secondary education. Subsequently, he enrolled at King William’s College on the Isle of Man, United Kingdom for his A-Level. He was accepted into the University of Lagos, Nigeria. where he graduated with a Bachelor of Law (LL.B.) with honors in 1983 and was called to the Nigerian bar in 1984.
He first worked for the law firm, Bentley Edu & Co., in Lagos, before establishing his own law firm, Femi Gbaja & Co. He then earned his Juris Doctor from Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in Georgia, USA, passed the Georgian bar exam in 2001, and set up a law firm in Atlanta. While in the USA, he actively participated in the election of Bill Campbell who later went on to become Mayor of Atlanta.
Gbajabiamila was first elected to the House of representatives in 2003, he represents the Surulere I constituency of Lagos State. He was the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives in the 7th National Assembly. He was head of the House of Representatives ad hoc committee investigating claims by the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) about the 140.9bn naira (about $1Bn) debt owed by ‘Zenon Petroleum & Gas Limited’ and ‘Forte Oil Plc’. The call for an investigation of the reported payment was made by another lawmaker, Bimbo Daramola who moved the motion that the House set up a panel to verify the claims by AMCON that the Femi Otedola-owned two companies have paid back the money which the government of Nigeria paid for petroleum products reportedly not delivered as agreed upon by the dictates of the government’s fuel subsidy scheme.
