Ernest Adegunle Oladeinde Shonekan (born 9 May 1936 in Lagos, south-west Nigeria) is a British-trained Nigerian lawyer, industrialist, politician and traditional chieftain. Prior to his political career, Shonekan was the Chief executive of United African Company of Nigeria PLC (UAC), a large Nigerian conglomerate. Shonekan was born and raised in Lagos, the former Nigerian capital (now Abuja). The son of an Abeokuta-born civil servant, he was one of six children born into the family. Shonekan was educated at C.M.S grammar school. He also attended and received a law degree from the University of London and was later called to the bar. He joined U.A.C in 1964, who would later send him to Harvard Business School. At U.A.C, he pursued a legal path; a few years after joining the company, he was promoted to the position of assistant legal adviser. He became a deputy adviser two years later, and soon joined the board.
In 1980, he was made chairman and Chief Executive of U.A.C. As head of U.A.C, he was the Chief Executive of the largest African-controlled company in Sub-Saharan Africa.
He was appointed as interim president of Nigeria by General Ibrahim Babangida on 26 August 1993. Babangida resigned under pressure to cede control to a democratic government. Shonekan's transitional administration only lasted three months, as a palace coup led by General Sani Abacha forcefully dismantled the remaining democratic institutions and brought the government back under military control on 17 November 1993.
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