To write about Dr. Dele Alake is to pen the biography of modern Nigeria’s struggle for democracy. His attribute as a warrior for democracy is evident
Long before he assumed office as the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, long before he was Commissioner for Information and Strategy during Bola Tinubu’s governorship, the man of strategy from Ikoro-Ekiti was first and foremost, a journalist — a brilliant, fearless and elegant one.
At National Concord, under Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, he started as a member of the editorial board and rose to become as Editor of both the Sunday and Daily newspapers. When the 12 June 1993 election was annulled, when many editors fled or compromised, Alake chose resistance. He was the editor who edited with a pistol on his desk.
As part of the vanguard of the pro-democracy guerrilla press, he was a central figure in the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) media underground. He wrote, he hid, he organised. He risked his life so that Nigeria could have a voice. That is why those who know never call him just “Dele” — he’s Comrade, Chief, Egbon.
In 1999, when Tinubu assembled his first cabinet in Lagos State, he needed a man who could translate vision into narrative, and narrative into belief. He chose Alake.
For eight years (1999-2007), Alake did not just manage information — he defined Lagos.
He created the template for modern government communication in Nigeria. Press briefings that were intellectual engagements, not propaganda. He made Alausa accessible to the press. He made governance a conversation. Many of the guys he mentored then are commissioners, editors, and ministers today.
It is no accident that every governor after Tinubu has tried to replicate the Alake model. There is only one original!
In politics, loyalty is the rarest currency. In about four decades, Alake has never wavered in his loyalty to Tinubu — through the battles with the anti-corruption agency, through opposition years, through exile and betrayal.
When it was not fashionable to stand with Tinubu, Alake stood. When it was dangerous to stand with MKO Abiola, Alake stood. This consistency is not sycophancy — it is conviction. It is the character of a man who believes that loyalty is a form of worship.
As Minister of Solid Minerals Development (2023 – date), Alake has brought the same reformist zeal that he brought to Lagos State into his responsibilities.
For the first time, Nigeria is taking solid minerals seriously as the new oil. Value addition, ban on raw lithium export, mining marshals to secure mining sites, global roadshows to attract investment — this is the Alake imprint: cerebral, structured, and bold.
At 70, he is not slowing down. He is just beginning a second act.
But beyond the offices, who is Dele Alake? He is Ekiti-born, Lagos-made. An Ekiti kete. A man of impeccable dress — agbada crisp, cap tilted to perfection — but his elegance is not in his clothes. It is in his prose.
He speaks like he writes — in paragraphs, in poetry, in history.
At 70, Alake remains what he has always been: a teacher, a fighter, a loyalist, a statesman.
Happy Birthday, Honourable Minister, Dele Alake.
You fought for democracy with your pen. You built Lagos State with your voice. You are now building Nigeria with your vision.
May your next 70 be even more impactful.
