User:Mutiu Yekeen
Intro
Afolabi ‘Fola' Munir Tinubu, aged 61 years, is a nephew to President Bola Tinubu and the current Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Primero Transport Services Limited. He has served in various capacities in the transport and mortgage sectors and is passionate about sports.
Early life
Fola Tinubu was born into the family of Alhaji Rafiu Olubodun Tinubu and Mrs. Christiana Adedoyin Tinubu on 23 May 1963 in Lagos Island, Lagos State. He attended Mercy Square School, Aroloya, Lagos. He spent one year at Ahmadiyya Grammar School, Eleyele, Ibadan, Oyo State, and completed his O’ Levels at Jibril Martin Memorial Grammar School, Iponri, Lagos State in 1980. He attended Ahmadiyya College, Agege for his A Levels in 1981 before sojourning to England to complete his A Levels at David Game Tutorial College, London in 1983. Fola was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Politics from the University of East Anglia, Norwich, England in 1986. He is an alumnus of the University of Sterling, Scotland where he did his MBA in 1987. He served the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme in 1989 at the defunct Allied Bank branch in Ita Eko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
Professional Career
Fola Tinubu is the managing director of Primero Transport Services Limited. Under his leadership, Primero TSL began operations in November 2015 with 434 buses plying several service routes in Lagos State. His career spans both the international and local markets. Before joining Primero TSL as its CEO, Fola served in various capacities both in the private and public sectors. He started his career as a Loan Officer with ITT Financial Services, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He worked as a Senior Loan Officer at Eastern Savings Bank, Maryland, USA, and thereafter ventured into the mortgage sub-sector of the financial services industry. He gathered professional skills in mortgages from James Madison Mortgage Company, Virginia, USA; Dime Bank, New York, USA and Eastern Mortgage, Virginia, USA as a Senior Mortgage Loan Officer. In 2002, Fola became the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Greater Washington Mortgage Company, Maryland, USA. His passion for supporting the development of the Nigerian economy inspired his relocation from the United States of America to Nigeria. He served as Managing Director of Maryland Wreckage Limited before joining Primero TSL as MD/CEO. Fola has served as a consultant on mortgages at the Lagos Home Ownership Mortgage Schemes (HOMS) Committee and several other boards. He is experienced in strategy formulation and development for key businesses and has been part of the development of several policies on transportation and mortgages in Lagos State.
Political Activities
He served as the Vice-Chairman of the 'Support Group for Ambode 2015' Campaign Organization. He also served as the Director-General/Vice-Chairman of Bola Tinubu 4 President 2023 Support Group in South West, Nigeria.
Other Activities
Philanthropy
Fola Tinubu’s generosity has impacted several lives. For example, his monthly food drive and empowerment programmes for needy men and women in Ebute-Metta, Lagos axis have provided succour to the beneficiaries. He further gives to worthy causes that advance the well-being of children and women. Owing to his passion for job creation and youth empowerment, first-class graduates of Lagos State University School of Transport are given automatic employment at Primero TSL. His generosity also extends to religious organisations regardless of faith.
Personal Life
Fola Tinubu is married with two children. In his spare time, he enjoys golfing and watching his favourite football team, Tottenham Hotspur.
Awards & Memberships
Awards and Recognition
• Fola was awarded Transport Personality of the Year in 2016 • He won the Icon of Nation Building in Africa in 2019 • He was recognised as an Outstanding Transport Operator of the Year 2018 • In 2018, Fola received an award of ‘The Most Efficient Public Mass Bus Transport Operator of the Year’ • He won The Excellent Transport Operator of the Year in 2019 • He won TREK Africa Transport Personality of the Year (2020) • He was bestowed the ‘Icon of Hope, Humanity & Societal Development Awards’ by SYAN in 2023. • The Road Safety of Nigeria presented Fola with the ‘Eminent Road Safety Supporting Ambassador in Nigeria’ award in 2023 • The Igbogbo Development Committee recognized Fola with the Adeboruwa Award of Excellence in 2023 following his contributions to the development of Ikorodu communities.
Memberships
Fola became a Fellow (FICA) member of the National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) in 2023. NICA is a body of chartered eminent credit management elites, empowered by law to control and supervise credit administration in Nigeria. In 2017, he became an Associate Member of Nigeria's Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT).
References
1. Al Jazeera, (29 May 2023) Bola Tinubu sworn in as Nigeria’s president, succeeds Buhari. www.aljazeera.com/news/ Retrieved 20 June 2024.
2. Sessou, E. (17 June 2017) Smart and analytical, I consult Asiwaju Bola Tinubu on virtually all issues – Fola Tinubu. www.vanguardngr.com/2018/06/Retrieved 20 June 2024.
3. Benson, E. A. (28 March 2019) Blue BRT Takeover: How Primero is transforming Nigeria’s transportation system. nairametrics.com/ Retrieved 20 June 2024.
4. Endurance, Okafor. (1 December 2020) Fola Tinubu: Pioneering modern transportation in Lagos State. businessday.ng Retrieved 20 June 2024.
5. TVC, (2023) Improving Education: 1980 Set of Jibril Martin Memorial Grammar School Renovates Laboratory. www.youtube.com Retrieved 10 June 2024.
6. DGC, (2024) David Game College. www.davidgamecollege.com/ Retrieved 10 June 2024).
7. Kasali, Segun. (24 May 2020) How I came about the nickname ‘contour’ —Tinubu. tribuneonlineng.com/ Retrieved 20 June 2024.
8. UEA, (2024) About University of East Anglia. ac.uk/universities/university-of-east-anglia Retrieved 10 June 2024).
9. US, (2024) University of Sterling. www.stir.ac.uk/ Retrieved 10 June 2024).
10. Kasali, Segun. (11 January, 2021) Federal, state governments should assist transport sector source cheaper funds —Tinubu. tribuneonlineng.com/ Retrieved 20 June 2024.
11. Autojosh, (25 May 2021) Transport Service Limited: 10 Things You Need To Know About This Lagos BRT Operator. autojosh.com/ Retrieved 20 June 2024.
12. Vanguard, (9 May 2021) BRT: We sacked over 300 drivers in 1-year to ensure commuter safety – Primero boss. www.vanguardngr.com/ Retrieved 20 June 2024.
13. Akoni, Olasunkanmi. (19 February 2015) Ambode group embarks on road shows in LGs. www.vanguardngr.com Retrieved 20 June 2024.
14. NAN, (25 November 2022) 2023: Lagos BRT boss begins road show for Tinubu-Shettima. gazettengr.com Retrieved 20 June 2024.
15. NICA, (2024) National Institute of Credit Administration. www.icanigeria.net/ Retrieved 11 June 2024.
16. CILT, Nigeria (10 June 2024) Together we're shaping the future of logistics, transport and supply chain. ciltnigeria.org/ Retrieved 10 June 2024.