Olorogun Barrister Kenneth Gbagi is a man that wears many caps. He is a lawyer of repute, a businessman, an entrepreneur, a philanthropist, a criminologist and a politician. He has dispensed the duties of every office he has ever held diligently and is known for his acute business acumen. He has never failed in any of his endeavours since he ventured into business.
Gbagi is a celebrated barrister at law, solicitor and advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. He was a one-time federal minister of state for education, community and opinion leader, security consultant, public servant, composite insurer and multiple award winner. And most recently, he was conferred with a national honour by Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari.
Chief Kenneth Gbagi, born in Sapele to the families of Chief and Mrs. Robinson Gbagi, hails from Oginibu in Ughelli South local government area of Delta state. In this local government and Oginibo, his country home, he has championed a number of development efforts which have endeared his people to him. This is evident in the manner his people troop around him whenever he needed their attention.
He has also sponsored some members of the community to schools and awarded scholarship to others. Many are presently enjoying the scholarship in different schools in the state. Gbagi, who seemed to have found grace at an early age, had his early education at the Bishop Johnson Memorial Primary School, Sapele, from where he proceeded to Kosofe Community High School, Lagos for his West African School Certificate and GCE O’ levels respectively.
He was at Emmanuel L. Quezon University in the Philippines for his Bachelor and Master’s degrees in criminology, a course and programme he is so passionate about. In his bid to adequately situate his skills in criminology, Olorogun Gbagi returned to Nigeria to study law at the University of Lagos, and subsequently attended the Nigeria Law School (Lagos Campus), where he was called to the Nigerian Bar on successful completion of the programme.
Gbagi, reputed as the biggest industrialist in Delta, launched into the business arena head-on, starting off with Geekos Security Nigeria Limited. This company, where he is the chairman, is responsible for setting-up and maintaining the entire physical and electrical security infrastructure of most banks and net-worth individuals in Nigeria. It is interesting to note that Geekos Security Nigeria Limited provided the foundation for the entire Gbagi’s conglomerate.
The Gbagi’s conglomerate boasts of the following, but not limited to: a) GKO Properties Ltd. – a key player in the home/property sector in Nigeria, managing portfolios that include 5-star hotels, shopping malls, housing estates, market lock-up stalls. b) The Robinson Gbagi Shopping Mall 1 & 2 which currently engages over 20,000 youths and tagged the ‘computer village’ of the Niger Delta.
c) The Signatious Hotel and Suites Ltd boast of over 300 rooms, and a major player in the hospitality and tourism industry in Nigeria. The hotel employs over one hundred professionals as well as provides recreational facility to help drive the energies of the region’s restive youths to more meaningful ventures. The facility equally serves as an ultra-modern holiday resort and has branches in Lagos and Abuja.
Another is the GEEKOS Investment Ltd which is an active player in the stock market, with shares in several blue chip companies, as well as industrial-scaled importation.
The GKO Group of Companies Ltd is another of Gbagi’s establishment that provides a connect and marriage between business and entertainment. This is manifested through the 6,400 – sitter Fame Dela Hall; the 5-Cinema theatre/mall Light House Arcade and 650-rooms world class Marriot Hotel, situated five minutes’ drive from the Osubi Airport in Delta state.
Another is the Nayee Group of Companies that houses Nayee Press Limited, Nayee Publishing Company and Nayee Law Publication Limited. The conglomerate has about the largest printing account in sub-Saharan Africa, with a client base that includes all major international oil companies, banks, judiciary and governments.
Kenneth Gbagi & Associates, where he is the Head of Chambers. The firm provides legal consultancy on wide range of issues, serves as Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria and Certified Alternative Dispute Resolution Mediator.
He runs a high profile consultancy to various government agencies, notably the Federal Ministries of Finance/Housing on the Gwarinmpa II Housing Scheme on its payment/funding processes.
Also on the public-private business phase, he was appointed chairman, board of directors of the Delta Development and Property Authority (DDPA); coordinator of Safety Equipment Manufacturing Nig. Ltd, a major investor in Presidential Insurance Plc., and Director at NEM Insurance Plc. Gbagi’s business philosophy is driven by community development and people oriented. At DDPA, Gbagi proved his integrity by refusing to steal money which belongs to the state government during the military era.
His crave for public service and giving back to society pushed him into politics, where he is a founding member of the People’s Democratic Partry PDP in Delta state. He was a governorship aspirant for the 1999 and 2007 PDP gubernatorial elections; a dream that is set to materialise in the 2023 general elections.
Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi served as minister of education in 2010 where he supervised and midwifed the creation of 13 federal universities, including Federal University of Lafia and eight federal government colleges; restructured the workings of agencies such as UBE, WAEC and NTI, and spearheaded the policy of using minimum of 6-credits in WAEC at two-sittings to be eligible for admission as opposed to the infamous one-sitting or nothing.
He was former chairman of the Governing Council of the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, where his primary occupation was the restructuring of the criminal justice system, prison reforms and training of lawyers.
Kenneth Omemevwa Gbagi is a registered member of the International Association of Chiefs-of-Police, USA; Ikoyi Club, Lagos; Rotary Club International (Ikeja South District all; National Executive Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association, International Bar Association; American Bar Association; Chartered Institute of Arbitration, and a distinguished Alumnus of the University of Lagos.
His philanthropist gesture of donating over $250,000 to Rotary International for charity is well documented. He is the first living black man to attain the coveted AKS member of Rotary International and recipient of numerous national and international awards.
He is currently the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party in Delta state with a mandate to liberate Delta from the grips of poverty, insecurity and corruption. Gbagi’s campaign centers around revitalizing the economic structure of a struggling Delta.
As a business minded man of the people he has reassured Deltans on notable changes in the way things have been run by the outgoing administration. As a governor, if given the mandate in 2023, Gbagi is set to transform Delta to the envy of all Nigerians. With his business acumen, Gbagi has said he would establish business outfits in different parts of the state where thousands of youths will be employed.
He has promised that within 100 days of his swearing in as governor, he would turn Delta around for good. There are many opportunities in the state which the incumbent government is not given attention, Gbagi has said his administration would harness business potentials in all the 25 local government areas to create massive job opportunity for all Delta youths.
