Faleke James Abiodun

Abiodun James Faleke (born 25 December 1959) is a business management and logistic consultant.

He is a politician and a member of Nigeria’s House of Representatives from the commercial hub city of Lagos. In his early career, Faleke worked in senior managerial positions with several high-profile companies.

He was with Aluminium Manufacturing Company of Nigeria (ALUMCO) PLC as Purchasing Manager and, in early 2000, moved his services to Crown Agents Ltd as Commercial Manager.

Faleke joined active politics in 2003 after Ahmed Bola Tinubu, then governor of Lagos state, appointed him as the first Executive Secretary of the newly created Ojodu Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos state.

In 2011, Faleke won a vote to represent Ikeja Federal Constituency of Lagos state in Nigeria’s Federal House of Representatives.

In 2015, he ran on a joint ticket as deputy governorship candidate to Abubakar Audu in Kogi State. They won majority votes, displacing the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for the first time in over a decade with a comfortable margin. However, Audu died shortly before the official declaration of results, leading to a transfer of votes to Yahaya Bello, who was the first runner-up in the APC primary. Faleke challenged this decision, but lost in the Supreme Court.

Born in Ekinrin Adde, Ijumu Local Government Area in the old Kabba Province, now part of Kogi West, Faleke had his early education in Ijumu. He is an alumnus of Abdulazeez Atta Memorial College, Okene.

In 1986, he graduated from Kaduna Polytechnic with a Higher National Diploma (HND) in Purchasing and Supply Management, earning the award of best student in his class with an Upper Credit. He holds a master's degree (MBA) in Business Administration from Imo State University, Owerri, in 2003.

Faleke is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS), London, and a Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration (IPA). Between 1986 and 2003, he worked in various logistics and management roles, including Purchasing Expediter at National Orthopaedic Hospital, Lagos, Material Manager at Kayo Foods Limited, and Purchasing Manager at Air Liquid PLC and ALUMCO PLC before becoming Commercial Manager at Crown Agents Ltd.

His political career began in 2003 with his appointment as pioneer Executive Secretary of Ojodu LCDA, Lagos State, serving as substantive chairman for two terms until 2011. He also served as Chairman of Conference 57 (Lagos State Local Government Chairmen) from 2006 to 2011.

During this period, he held assignments on the Lagos State Electoral Reform Committee and the Governor’s Advisory Committee of Lagos State. In 2011, he was elected to Nigeria’s Federal House of Representatives, representing Ikeja Federal Constituency, and is known for his contributions to debates in the House.

As a member of the House, Faleke chaired the Anti-Corruption Committee and served on committees for Public Procurement, MDGs, Interior, Public Accounts, Science and Technology, and the Petroleum Subsidy Probe. He sponsored bills, including the NYSC Act Amendment Bill (life insurance coverage for NYSC members) and a motion to shut over 1,400 illegal border routes to curb insurgency.

Faleke was deputy governorship candidate to Abubakar Audu in the 2015 Kogi State governorship election. Audu and Faleke won a majority of votes, but Audu’s death led to a supplementary election where Yahaya Bello was nominated by APC. Faleke challenged the decision, arguing he should have been declared governor elect due to his position on the joint ticket. He refused to accept the deputy governorship position, citing a commitment to Audu’s legacy.

Faleke was born in Ekinrin Adde, Ijumu Local Government Area, which became part of Kogi West upon the creation of Kogi State in 1991. His early education was in Ijumu, and he is an old student of Abdulazeez Atta Memorial College, Okene.