Former Lagos State Governor Lateef Jakande has died on Thursday. He was governor of Lagos State from 1979 to 1983. Below are some quick facts about him:
- He was the first civilian governor of Lagos state.
- He became governor of Lagos State from 1979 to 1983 on the platform of the Unity Party of Nigeria, UPN.
- He was a journalist where he first worked with the Daily Service and then in 1953, joined the Nigerian Tribune where he rose to become the Editor-in-Chief.
- He was the first President of the Newspaper Proprietors Association of Nigeria, NPAN.
- He was Minister of Works under the Sani Abacha military regime from 1993 to 1998.
- He was charged, prosecuted, and convicted of treason in 1983 after the military government headed by Muhammadu Buhari and Tunde Idiagbon took over the government and was later pardoned.
- He later became a member of different political parties at different times. The parties include the All Nigeria Peoples Party and Action Party of Nigeria.
- His government is seen as an all-inclusive government that has ever existed in Lagos State.
- His tenure saw the birth of Lagos State University.
- He published several books, some of which are The Case for Lagos State; The trial of Obafemi Awolowo; The Problems and Prospects of Free Education, and The Role of the Mass Media in a Developing Country.
