The first Military Governor of Lagos State, Brig. Gen. Mobolaji Johnson, has died at the age of 83, his son, Deji, confirmed that the retired soldier passed on Wednesday.
Mobolaji Johnson was born on February 9, 1936, to the family of Joshua Motola Johnson and his wife, Gbemisola Johnson (née Dudley-Coker), his father was of the Egba heritage and was a member of the Royal West African Frontier Force during World War II. His grandfather’s last name was previously Osholero but he changed it to Johnson after the priest who converted him to Christianity.
The Mobolaji Johnson family moved to Lagos during the early parts of the twentieth century. Johnson had five other siblings including his brother, Femi Johnson, founder of Femi Johnson and Company of Ibadan. Mobolaji Johnson started his education at Reagan Memorial Baptist School, Yaba, Methodist School in 1941.
He then attended Hussey College, Warri, 1954. In 1955, he moved to Methodist Boys High School Lagos, the school his father attended, where he finished his secondary education in 1957.
While in MBHS, Lagos, Mobolaji was a good all-round sportsman.
In 1959 Mobolaji attended the Officer Cadet Training School in Ghana. Mobolaji Johnson also attended the Mons Officer Cadet School in Aldershot and the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, United Kingdom, between 1960-1961.