Solomon Adun Asemota

nt of Nigeria at the meeting of the Representatives of the Laity, Archdiocese of Lagos at IWOPIN on Friday July 14, 2006;

He became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in 1986.

He was also the personal lawyer to General Yakubu Gowon, whom he still represents till date. Other notable mentions include Hon. Anthony Aniagolu, retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, former President of Nigeria, Justice Ovie-Whiskey, 1983 Chairman, FEDECO, Sunday Adewusi, former Inspector-General of Police at the Judicial Inquiry into the activities of the Defunct FEDECO. Acted for Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, former Governor of Kano State and Chief Jim Nwobodo former Governor of Anambra State for their release from prison 1986.

Then he was a Member of the Council of Legal Education 1979 - 1985. He became a Member, Disciplinary Committee, of the General Council of the Bar, 1990 to 1995 and Member, Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee 1991 - 1993 (the committee that confers the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria on Lawyers).

He was appointed Secretary to the Nigerian Bar Association, Benin Branch, 1974 - 1978. He became the National Treasurer, Nigerian Bar Association. 1978 - 1980 then Secretary, Finance Committee, Sixth Commonwealth Law Conference - 1980. He was a Member of the General Council of the Bar 1978 - 1984. He became a Visiting Lecturer for Courses in Civil Procedure at the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies - 1985.

He resigned from the Nigeria Police Force in October 1970, to practice Law.

He is the Founder and Principal Partner of the Law Firm of Solomon Asemota & Co., (since 1970), Barristers and Solicitors, with offices in Benin City, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and London.

In 1969, he was promoted to the rank of Superintendent and was appointed Officer-in Charge, Detective Training School, Ikoyi, Lagos.

He was the Second-in-Command 1966 – 1968 at the National Bureau of the Interpol, Central C.I.D. Alagbon Close, Ikoyi, Lagos, and was, at one time, the Investigator attached to Tribunals of Inquiry into E.C.N. and the Ports Authority. He was promoted to the rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police and was a member of the Nigeria Police Officers Delegation to Interpol Conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 1967. He was later transferred to the Crime Division as Second-in-Command.

He attended the University of Lagos between 1964 and 1969 where he obtained his Bachelor of Law (Honours) degree in 1969. In 1970, he was called to bar and became a barrister at Law after completing at the Nigerian Law School.

He became the Aide-de-Camp to the First Governor of Midwest Region, Chief Jereton Mariere 1963 - 1964. Later left for the Southern Police College Ikeja and became the Course Officer, Cadet Sub-Inspector Course and Sergeants Promotion Courses at the Advanced Training Wing. 1964 - 1966. One of his students Ibrahim Coomassie later became the Inspector General of Police, while five others got to the rank of Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIGs).

In 1962, he was promoted to the rank of an Assistant Superintendent of Police, and designated Chief Officer Local Government Police Ondo North (Comprising, Ekiti, Akoko and Owo Divisions which now constitute about half of Ondo State), where he performed duties of Divisional Police Officer, in charge of 800 L.S. Police men & 26 Police Stations. He was seconded (for 6 months in 1963) to the United Nations Operation (ONUC) in the Congo now Zaire. He served in Leopoldville now Kinshasa and later Second-in-Command (Police) at Luluaburg now Katanga.

He was enlisted into the Nigerian Police Force as a Cadet Sub-Inspector: Course No.6 in 1959. After training, was posted to Ikeja Province where he served first, as prosecutor, at the Chief Magistrate’s Court Ikeja, in Chief Magistrate Mason Begho’s Court. Later, he was a Course Officer, Man O’ War Bay in Victoria Cameroons, 1961. He then became a prosecutor, Chief Magistrate’s Court Sapele in Chief Magistrates Olayinka Odumosu and Sikiru Abina Courts, as they then were, 1961 before becoming Inspector, Administration then Second-in-Command Traffic Division, and later Crime Branch at Ikeja provincial Police Department, also in 1961.

Solomon Adun Asemota SAN (born 8 December 1938) is a Nigerian lawyer and human rights activist. He is the Founder and Principal Partner of the Law Firm of Solomon Asemota & Co., (since 1970), Barristers and Solicitors, with offices in Benin City, Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and London. He has written several publications dedicated towards effecting a change in the state of the Nation. He became a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) in 1986. As the Nation Chairman of the National Christian Elders’ Forum (NCEF), he has made a lot of strides regarding Democracy and freedom for Christians in Nigeria.

Solomon Adun Asemota was born on December 8, 1937 in Benin City, the capital of Edo State, Southern Nigeria. His early formal education began in 1945 at St. Luke School, Jos before he completed his secondary school education in 1948 at Immaculate Conception College, Benin City. He attended Southern Police College, Ikeja, Lagos (1959 - 1960) (Cadet Sub-Inspectors’ Course) before going to Wakefield Police College, Yorkshire, England in 1962 for Advanced Police Training and Scottish Police College, Kincardine Aloa, Scotland in 1969 for Senior Officers Training in organisation and management.