Aketi: A man of exceptional courage, humility, tenacity of purpose
By Olufemi Adeosun
TO be so invited by Dr. Wale Okediran to review this book on Aketi, a man with a legendary status both in life and in death, presents a seeming paradox to me: it is a fascinating opportunity, and at the same time, it constitutes an arduous task. It is fascinating because, Aketi, as he was fondly called, remains a riveting personality whose life personified such exceptional courage, humility, a tenacity of purpose and numerous other virtues that are a rarity among many of today’s generation.
I equally consider my task before you this afternoon` a challenging one because I would have to carry out this review on the subject matter whose life’s trajectories (as chronicled in the book) were laced with many defining moments, in less than one hour.
This biography, Aketi: The Life and Times of Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (Accessible Publishers Ltd, 2024; Ibadan), is the compelling story of a multi-dimensional thinker who had a finger in a lot of pies and equally excelled in all. Written in a witty narrative style by the master story-teller himself, Wale Okediran-a medical practitioner turned modern griot- the book depicts the promising background, childhood fantasies, uncommon bravery, resilience, existential struggles, and the eventual triumph of the former student leader, erstwhile National Bar Association (NBA) President, ex Attorney General and Hon. Commissioner of Justice, Ondo State and two-term governor of the State, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu (SAN).
Okediran, the biographer, is a renowned fiction writer who, despite his medical background, emerged on the Nigerian literary space in 1987 with his first novel Rainbows Are for Lovers. Since then, apart from cementing his place among the best writers of post-independent Nigeria in sheer volume and topicality, he has equally carved a niche for himself as a biographer of note, having done several works in this unique genre of literature.
However, this new outing must have had a profound impact on him, particularly given his personal sense of loss occasioned by the death of a fraternal friend with whom he had shared so many emotional moments. In fact, Okediran disclosed in the preface to the book that Arakunrin himself had given him the nod to write this book before he succumbed to the cold hands of death exactly a year ago.
The 412-page book is structured into eight broad parts, with the parts further sub-divided into thirty unequal chapters. However, the parts and their sub-units are adroitly woven together to make an organic whole, a form that constitutes a building block in a flow of cryptic symbols and images that are capable of holding the readers spellbound, even from the very first page.
The strength of the book lies in the author’s captivating portrayal of the defining moments and events in the life of Aketi, the enigmatic character of the narrative. In framing the plot, the author deliberately juggles between third-person and omniscient narrative styles.
This mode enables him to assume the role of a narrator in certain instances and at others, empowers him to share the narration with specific people and personalities who now recount their own encounters based on their own personal experiences with the eponymous character. In a way, I presume that Okediran may have adopted these styles of narration in a manner reminiscent of Brechtian alienation technique of storytelling to, perhaps, prevent the readers from any form of emotional attachment to the compelling events as they unfold in the narration.
In Part One of the book, the author chronicles, in the most assuring, yet telling manner, the story of the formative years of Aketi – his ancestral background, academic pursuits, exuberances, and exemplary courage, even in the face of life’s undulating topography.
The part also features, perhaps the most defining moments in his early life, where destiny thrust upon him the burden of care for his mother and younger siblings upon the death of his father, Jacob Oluwole Akeredolu, popularly known as “Eniire”. Although largely rudimentary, this part remains pivotal as it bears eloquent testimonies to the evolution of the life of the iconic figure, Aketi. This is arguably so, because the events and occurrences in his formative years helped in shaping his social and political outlooks in his adulthood. For instance, his uprightness, honesty, courage, resourcefulness, deep insights and admirable sense of humour, are the character traits that were later made manifest in all his endeavours, whether in private life or public sphere, as he dedicated much of his adult life to public service.
A particular occurrence in the book that exemplifies Aketi’s courage was the instance of his brawl with the authorities of the NYSC Orientation Camp in Awgu, Enugu State, where he had his compulsory one-year national service.
The terror personified Camp Commandant-Capt. Miller, had hit him with a swagger stick; perhaps in a bid to pound him into submission on account of an alleged romance with an unnamed beautiful Corps member. The young Aketi was said to have reacted fiercely to his abuser’s act with a rain of slaps. This singular act of bravery would have earned him a six-month extension of service were it not for his colleagues at the camp who jettisoned tribal and religious affiliations to confront the power-that-be.
More than four decades after, the book also records that Aketi took a similar gallantry role when the security of lives and property of the people of the Southwest region was under constant threat by the marauding herdsmen. He was said to have played significant roles in the establishment of Western Security Network, code-named Amotekun, to combat their menace, even when it seemed that the Federal Government, at that time, was not favourably disposed to the idea. In his preface to the book, Okediran puts this courageous act in proper perspective: “As Chairman of the South West Governors’ Forum, Akeredolu alongside his colleagues in the South West States took up the battle to end the several security challenges confronting the region head-on. Like a true general, he led the battle for the formation of the South West Security Network, code named Amotekun. He placed the interest and safety of the region far above his personal interest.”
Part Two of the book gives account of his professional practice: from having a short stint at the Legal Aid Council as a youth-Corps member, his foray into law practice which began in 1978, to his partnership with his colleague at the bar Akinlolu Olujimi (SAN), with whom he established and ran the Olujimi and Akeredolu Law Firm. The author also lays before us some of the landmark cases that the firm successfully handled.
As we follow the chronicles of his professional life in the book, we could see that Aketi was not into law practice as a means of amassing wealth; rather, he saw the law as a tool to serving humanity. His commitment to the activities of the Nigerian Bar Association (the umbrella body of lawyers that caters for and regulates the affairs of its members in relation to law practice), was rewarded when he was elected the President of the association in 2008. In Part Three, the author provides a detailed account of Akeredolu’s involvement in politics: his political ideology, his first election as Governor of Ondo State, the disappointment felt mainly from those he trusted, and his eventual re-election as a two term governor of the state.
The Fourth part, which is a buildup on the third, provides illuminating insights on the electioneering strategies deployed by Aketi to seek a return to Alagbaka Government House for a second term. It also documents his eventual successes and the challenges he faced, particularly his strained relationship with his Deputy, Agboola Ajayi. While Part Five discusses his major achievements in office, Part Six details his thoughts on salient socio-economic and political issues in the country. The seventh and the eighth parts appear to be the most emotional moments in the narration, as people from various walks of life took time to pay tributes to a man generally viewed as typifying the best ideals of courage, love, resilience and who has, like all mortals, transited to a higher realm of existence.
The book also addresses some of the contentious issues that dogged the personal and political life of Aketi, particularly the controversies about the place and roles of his lovely wife, Betty Akeredolu and his son, Babajide Akeredolu in the affairs of the state that he governed for eight years. Okediran narrates their fitting roles in the personal and political life of the legal titan. He, however, does not discountenance the roles of Aketi’s siblings, and his other children.
Just as every work of art in its framing wholeness is regarded as a living and a progressive project within the literary space, Okediran has framed his narrative in this new outing as best as he could and perhaps, within the confine of his personal convictions. It is now left to the critics and readers alike to dissect the ‘whys’ and ‘why nots’ of it.
Suffice to say that, despite his near perfection and impeccable efforts to rid the book of any mistakes, like all mortals, Okediran was still unable to avoid some negligible errors that are common to most exceptional writers. Of course, these slips do not diminish the excellence of the work. No matter the amount of energy and the commitment he invests in its crafting, the book will still not attain a stage of artistic perfection. A perfect work is never finished and a finished work is never perfect. Writing in itself, as Kayode Fayemi implies in his book titled Nation Building as an Unfinished Business, is an unending task.
Against this background, therefore, it is my singular honour and privilege to formally recommend this book to all seekers of knowledge, students of politics and power dynamics, historians and sociologists in the hope that it will further energise a robust debate on the place of man in the face of time, particularly on the vexatious issues of individual freedom, political correctness, courage, and the role(s) of convictions in the face of existential struggles whether in the garbs of politics, inter-personal and communal relationships, acquaintances, or in matters of personal choice.
This, in my view, remains a perfect way of keeping the memories of Aketi alive. After all, the core of his humanity, as the author has ably demonstrated in this cerebral work, is anchored on the supremacy of ideas; ideas that facilitate consensus building; consensus building that produces wide range resolutions; and resolutions that proceed from healthy public debates wherein superior arguments are allowed to dictate the rules of engagement.
* Dr. Olufemi Adeosun teaches at the Department of English And Literary Studies, Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti
