Aiyedatiwa sworn in as substantive Ondo Gov
By Julius Alabi, Akure
The Ondo State acting governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has been sworn in as the substantive governor of the state.
The swearing-in ceremony was held in Akure, the state capital.
He was sworn in by the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Olusegun Odusola.
TheNiche had earlier reported that Aiyedatiwa would be sworn in today as the new governor of Ondo State.
Sources earlier told our reporter that the swearing-in was set for 4pm, but had to be moved slightly to allow the governor arrive Akure from his hometown where he had gone for the Christmas holiday.
This development followed the demise of the state governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, on Wednesday morning.
READ ALSO: Aiyedatiwa set to take oath as Ondo Governor
Akeredolu died in Germany at the age of 67 after battling prostate cancer, the state government disclosed in a statement.
Aiyedatiwa was the the acting governor until today, when power was formally transferred to him after Akeredolu went on another medical vacation.
Aiyedatiwa’s walk to becoming the governor of Ondo State was a long one that lasted one year since Akeredolu suffered health challenges before he eventually succumbed to the claws of death on Wednesday in faraway Germany where he was being treated for prostate cancer.
Aiyedatiwa survived an impeachment plot by Akeredolu’s allies in the Ondo State House of Assembly and stark opposition by his late principal’s foot soldiers.
Controversy enveloped the politics of the state in the last few months with activists and constitutional lawyers calling on Akeredolu to transmit power to Aiyedatiwa in line with the 1999 Constitution.
Akeredolu was in and out of hospitals abroad before he breathed his last on December 27, 2023.
Eventually, Akeredolu, a second-term governor before his death, transmitted power to Aiyedatiwa on December 13, 2023, as he embarked on a fresh medical trip overseas, the second in 2023.
Akeredolu, 67, did not make it as he died of complications arising from prostate cancer where he was being treated in Germany.
