Festus Keyamo Bio: Legal Career, Awards, Early Life and Education, Minister of Aviation

Festus Egwarewa Keyamo (born 21 January 1970) SAN FCIArb is a Nigerian lawyer, columnist and human rights activist. In April 2018, Keyamo was appointed the Director of Strategic Communications for President Buhari’s 2019 re-election bid and was made the minister of aviation and aviation development by president Bola Tinubu on August 16, 2023.

Personal details

Early life and education of Festus

Festus Keyamo was born on January 21, 1970, in Ughelli, a town in Delta State in southern Nigeria but his father is from Effurun, a Delta city. He received his primary education at Model Primary School and his secondary education at Government College, Ughelli, where he obtained the West African School Certificate in 1986. He then proceeded to Ambrose Alli University at Ekpoma, in Edo State southern Nigeria where he obtained a Bachelor of. Law degree in 1992 and was called to the Nigerian Bar in December 1993.

The legal career of Festus

He started his legal career in 1993 at Gani Fawehinmi Chambers in Lagos State, South West Nigeria. After spending two years in Gani Fawehinmi chambers, he left to establish Festus Keyamo Chambers.

He was counsel to the leader of the Niger-Delta People’s Volunteer Force, Mujahid Dokubo-Asari in his trial for treason and lead counsel in the treason trial of Ralph Uwazuruike, leader of the Movement for Activation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB). Keyamo was also a consultant in the Bola Ige murder.

In 2008, he took the Federal Government of Nigeria to court over illegal appointments of service chiefs.

In 2017, Canadian singer and prostitute Stephanie Otobo, on behalf of Apostle Suleman Johnson, through her lawyer Festus Keyamo, alleged that she did not keep a promise of marriage made to her after he was saying that she had several sexual relations with her.

Political positions

Festus was among the appointed ministers in the second administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

After his nomination, he was equally vetted by the Senate. Until September 24, 2019, Keyamo was appointed Nigeria’s Minister of State, for the Niger Delta, before he was transferred to the Ministry of Labor and Employment by President Muhammadu Buhari just one month after his initial appointment on August 21, 2019 .

After several calls from some political commentators as to why he did not make both the first and second ministerial lists, president Bola Ahmed Tinubu forwarded Keyamo’s name to the Senate on August 4, 2023 as a ministerial nominee for confirmation.

He was made the minister of aviation and aviation development by president Bola Tinubu on August 16, 2023

Awards and Recognitions

Keyamo was named by the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC), Nigeria in July 2017 as one of the outstanding Nigerian lawyers who were awarded the SAN status. Keyamo and others named in the 2017 SAN list were inducted into the elevated league of the Supreme Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) in September 2017.

In 2017, Keyamo was also awarded the Global Human Rights Award by the United States Global Leadership Council in Washington for his contributions over the years in protecting and promoting human rights and campaigning for accountable governments in Nigeria. Former president of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari presented Festus Keyamo and 338 others in 2023 of the national award