Biodun Oyebanji: 5 things you should know about Ekiti Governor-Elect

Biodun Oyebanji, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has been declared the winner of the governorship election in Ekiti State.

Oyebanji polled 187,057 votes to defeat Segun Oni of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Bisi Kolawole of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

While Oni is a familiar name in Ekiti politics because he is a former governor of the state, the election was Oyebanji’s first shot at a gubernatorial contest.

Here are five things to know about the governor-elect.

Age

The governor-elect was born in December 1957 in Ikogosi-Ekiti, Ekiti State. He is 54-year-old.

He’s a former lecturer

Oyebanji started his career as a lecturer at the University of Ado-Ekiti in the Department of Political science in 1993. He served the university for four years and proceeded to work as a manager for defunct Omega Bank PLC now known as Heritage Bank till May 1999.

Political positions held

Shortly after his sojourn at Heritage Bank, Oyebanji started his journey into politics in June 1999 when he became the special assistant on parliament affairs to the governor of the state at the time, Chief Niyi Adebayo, who served the state from May 1999 to May 2003.

From August 2000 to September 2001, he served as a special adviser to the State Governor and later became the Chief of Staff to the governor.

At the federal level, Oyebanji served as the chairperson for a governing board of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development from June 2009 to December 2010.

In 2010, he was appointed as the Commissioner for Integration and Intergovernmental Affairs in Ekiti during the first tenure of Governor Kayode Fayemi.

In 2011, he became the Commissioner for Transformation Strategy and Delivery of Head Office. He also served as the Commissioner for the Ministry of Budget, Economic Planning, and Service delivery in Ekiti state between January 2013, and October 2014.

During the second tenure of Fayemi which started in 2018, Oyebanji became the Secretary to the Ekiti State Government. He held the position till he became the ruling party’s governorship aspirant in January 2022, and went on to win the election.

Education

Oyebanji holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc.) degree in Political Science from the Ondo State University (now Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti) in 1989.

He proceeded to the University of Ibadan, Oyo State in 1992 where he bagged a Master’s Degree (M.Sc) in Political Science (International Relations & Strategic Studies).

Family

The governor-elect is married to Olayemi Oyebanji who is a princess in Ado Ekiti and also an Associate Professor at the University of Ibadan. Their marriage is blessed with children.