Chief Akibola was born on Thursday 18th March 1926 (at about 11.20am). His maternal grandfather was the Baba Ijo of Baptist Church Oke Saje, Abeokuta while his grandmother was the Iya Ijo of the same church. His grandfather was the OLORI PARAKOYI of Keesi and one of the assessors of the customary court A, Ake, Abeokuta. His father, Chief Sobayo Afolabi Akibola was the Bagbiwo of Keesi and Chief Tax Officer at the Treasury Abeokuta.
Chief Adebola Akibola had his primary education at Baptist Elementary School, Oke Shaje Abeokuta and his Secondary Education at Baptist Boys High School Abeokuta under Rev. J.N. Patterson, Rev. B.T. Griffin and Rev. Ingram. He later went to Ilesha Grammar School under Rev. N.O.A. Lahanmi. He passed seven Cambridge Examination with distinction.
He worked for seven months with the Nigerian Railway (revenue section) before joining Administrator General Dept., which was a division of Federal Ministry of Justice from 1949 – August 1955. He left for the United Kingdom on September 5th 1955 under Western Nigeria Government Scholarship to study Catering and Hotel management. It was strange at that time for someone with his educational background to pursue such a course because such professions like medicine, law, and engineering were the vogue. Chief Akibola thus became one of the pioneers of Professionally Trained Caterers in Nigeria. As a fact, there were only eight of them, seven men and a woman. He studied at the Heddersfold Polytechnic, Yorkshire (now University of Yorkshire) and passed all the professional exams including examination, which qualified him to be elected a Fellowship of the Institute of Hotel and Catering International Management Association UK. Soon after leaving college, he was offered a job in an American oil company(Standard Oil Company, Kuwait) which he rejected because he was under pressure to return home.
He returned to Nigeria in 1959 and worked briefly with Lafia Hotel Ibadan under Western Nigeria Development Corporation. He later joined, as Catering Officer, Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology, Ibadan. He was part of the team (under Chief Rotimi Williams as the Council Chairman of the University of Ife) who did the spade work for the establishment of the University.
In September 1962, he joined the University of Lagos as its Founding Catering Manager. In fact, Chief Akibola was the fifth staff to be so appointed by University Council (pa Daramola, Prof. Eni-Njoku, Chief AY. Eke, Mrs. Morgan and Chief Akibola in that order). During his tenure as the Catering Manager, he was in charge of all University Catering arrangements – official parties, students, academic, senior staff club, guest houses- including official University Functions such as Convocations, lunch / dinner for University Guests including some Heads of Government e.g. Haile Salase etc. There was one occasion when the university had its Convocation Banquet at one of the leading Hotels in Lagos only to decide thereafter that all University catering functions will be managed by Chief Akibola. By the time Chief Akibola retired from the university, he was serving a minimum of over fifteen thousand meals a day.
After retirement, he was offered a job by the United Nations at its base in Geneva. He was also offered a Management position to manage one of the leading hotels in Victoria Island and another on the mainland, Lagos. Because of his desire to increase his own business, he refused all the offers. Thus “Afara Oyin Hotel” was born. Besides managing his own business, he was Catering Consultant to Obafemi Awolowo University, Bayero University and University of Benin. He was a board Director of the Ogun State Hotels now Gateway Hotels.
Chief Akibola is a devout member of Baptist Church at Oke Shaje, Abeokuta and First Baptist Church, Yaba. He belongs to Egbe Imole at Shaje and Comrades in Christ Society at First Yaba Baptist Church. The two societies are premier societies in their respective churches. He contributed immersely to the evangelical development and growth of these churches in his own private way with out any fanfare, believing that what he does is between him and his God. He does not believe in ostentatious living.
Chief Adebola Akibola loves his roots, maybe because he grew up amongst them and knows them deeply. He is very generous and kind to them and spends his time and resources for the development of his township – Keesi, Abeokuta.
1. He was the Chairman of Keesi Social Club. In his capacity as their chairman, he was the brain behind the building of Keesi Clinic, the first in Abeokuta by a club. The late Alake of Egba land, Oba Lipede was so pleased that he attended a private dinner in chief Akibola’s personal house after the opening of the Clinic.
2. Chief Akibola was also one of the brains behind the building of Orile Keesi Grammar School, which took only five months to complete.
3. He also was one of the patriots who built Keesi house of parliament (Ogboni Keesi house), which so far is the most imposing in Egba land.
The present Alake as Paramount Ruler of Egbaland, Oba Michael Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo Okukenu IV after due consultations conferred on Chief Akibola the General Tilte of Adila of Egbaland.
In appreciation of his services to his township, he was installed as the
With the Oluwo title, his responsibilities cover sixty three villages each with it own Baale.
He was a member of Akoka Lions club. He was also one of the founding members of Abeokuta social club (now Egba club).
Chief Adebola Akibola joined his ancestors on the 24th December 2009 (at about 11.20am).