A CONDOLENCE MESSAGE TO THE WIFE, CHILDREN AND THE ENTIRE FAMILY OF THE LATE PROFESSOR ADELOLA ADELOYE, AND A BRIEF TRIBUTE.
By
EMERITUS PROFESSOR T. O. OGUNLESI.
It was a great shock to me to receive the sad news of the death of my former student, ADELOLA ADELOYE, a very distinguished academic, one of the pioneers of Neurosurgery in Nigeria and Africa, and a good friend and unforgettable colleague.
ADELOLA ADELOYE was one of the first set of thirteen (13) Medical Students of the College of Medicine of the then University College Ibadan, established in Ibadan in 1948, as an affiliate of the University of London, who had their three year clinical training in Nigeria, instead of the United Kingdom, for the purpose of graduating with the degrees of M.B.B.S, London. These thirteen students were –
1. Adelola Adeloye
2. Bankole, M. A.
3. Alli, A. F.
4. Annan, W. G. T.
5. Ehanire, J. A.
6. Esimai, N. I.
7. Ibiam, E. U.
8. Lawson, E. A. L.
9. Mkereuwem, O. T.
10. Nwafor, D. C.
11. Obi, G. O.
12. Ralwan, W. B.
13. Ugo, B. O.
All of them graduated with flying colours in October 1960. By divine command, all of them have now gone to rest with the Lord, after very distinguished careers in various specialties of their choice, with ADELOLA being the last “to go”.
The details of the life and times of each of them will find their proper place in the history of Medicine in Nigeria wherever they are to be found – (private and public libraries, etc.) in Nigeria or elsewhere, and will emerge at the proper time. This is just a condolence message to Adelola’s wife, his children and the entire ADELOYE family, with fervent prayers that the Almighty God will grant them the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss, and for ADELOLA’s soul to rest in perfect peace.
I am not sure whether or not Adelola’s wife and children know how much he and I have been in touch with one another especially in the last few years. At least we were in touch by phone, quite often, such as when Professor Elebute in Lagos, Professor Oladipo Akinkugbe, Professor A. O. Lucas, all our close colleagues, were called home, to rest with the Lord.
I retired voluntarily from the University of Ibadan in 1983, at age of 60 years, and I have lived in Sagamu, Remo, Ogun State, where I was born and bred since then. But I had a house in University Crescent, Bodija Ibadan quite close to Adelola’s house, where a Bank now stands, because I sold it to the Bank since I had other houses at Osuntokun Avenue and Kongi, all of which I sold recently, for good reasons. I often called to say HELLO to him whenever I was in Ibadan. But that was before I was 90, now I am 98, on a wheel-chair, most of the time.
My “teacher – student” relationship with Adelola and his classmates began in 1958 at Adeoyo Hospital, Ibadan. ADEOYO HOSPITAL was Ibadan’s first choice by the pioneer teachers from the United Kingdom – Professors Alexander Brown (Medicine) Beatrice Joly (Surgery) John Lawson (O & G) and so on, who were the “founding fathers of the Faculty of Medicine of the present University of Ibadan. They worked very hard to enlarge and improve the various departments of the hospital, with the hope that that LONDON would approve that hospital as the teaching hospital of the new University College. But the visitation that came from London in 1952 said NO, and this led to the building of the present UCH, from funds generously provided by a WELFARE AND DEVELOPMENT FUND from the colonial Office in London.
I returned to Nigeria after study leave in the UK in 1958, armed with M.R.C.P. (LONDON), M.R.C.P. (EDIN.) and I was immediately asked to take over the Department of Medicine of Adeoyo from Professor Alexander Brown, and promoted from Medical Officer to the rank of Specialist Physician. Professor Brown knew that it would take some time to build up a Consultant Clinic such as he had developed at Adeoyo, in the new Teaching Hospital, so he urged me, and I gladly accepted, to take these 13 students on a Teaching Ward Round at Adeoyo, twice a week, preferably in the late afternoons – 4pm – 6pm. That was the beginning of a Professional relationship that grew steadily became very productive, fruitful and beneficial in many ways.
In 1961, I was offered, and I accepted an appointment as Senior Lecturer in the Department of Medicine, U.I/U.C.H – all neatly and well arranged by Professor Alexander Brown. “I need you, in my department”, he told me, in confidence. Promoted Associate Professor in 1962 and Professor in 1965. I became the First Head of the Department of Medicine (Nigerian) in 1972, after the death of Professor Alexander Brown. I was also offered, I accepted, and so became Nigeria’s First Emeritus Professor of Medicine, to the glory of God.
As I look back, over the years, I am grateful to God, that I have lived to see my students at Ibadan, beginning with Adelola and his classmates excel, in the Medical Profession, attaining greater heights than my humble self, at least in their chosen specialties. I have in mind, intellectual giants like Kayode Osuntokun and his wife (then Camerom Cole), Lateef Salako, Osotimehin, Wole Ojo, Lagundoye, to mention a few. Indeed, my records show that there were 20 of them in the graduating set of October 1961, 35 in the graduating set of 1962, 40 in the graduating set of 1963, 50 in the graduating set of 1964, 40 in the graduating set of 1965, 46 in the graduating set of 1966, 42 in the graduating set of 1967, 46 in the graduating set of 1968 and so on. I will stop there, for reasons of space, but I am certain that that was the position, up to the time when I retired in 1960.
However, it is important to note that the graduands did not exceed 50 in any of these years. This was because London insisted to start with, and we (the teachers) agreed that, in order to maintain a high quality of facilities for direct teaching and training, the ratio of students to hospital beds (with patients) in the hospital should be about 1 to 10. That is 10 hospital beds for every clinical student, all through his 3 years of training. Therefore with 500 beds which the bed capacity of the new UCH at that time, the annual intake of Pre-clinical students into year one (Anatomy Physiology, etc) was restricted to the best 50 applicants. Adelola and his classmates satisfied those criteria. Students like Dosekun, Akinkugbe and others who had finished passed their pre-clinical exams in Nigeria before the new UCH was completed and commissioned in 1947, we sent to London and placed in teaching hospitals there, where they finished and obtained their M.B.B.S London.
I suppose that the situation was changed, whatever the reason or pressure, after the University College became the University of Ibadan. Be that as it may, I believe that Ibadan is still “First and Best”.
Finally, my recollection now, as I write, is that Adelola was the youngest in age among his classmates. But I also recall that he was very brilliant and very hardworking, and that I was not surprised that he became No. 2 to the late Professor Olatunde Odeku in nurturing the growth and development of Neurosurgery in Ibadan. I am also happy to note that Adelola followed some of my own footsteps, such as training at the Postgraduate Medical School of London and Hammersmith Hospital Ducane Road London, where I was a Senior House Officer in 1957, and that he did his major Postgraduate studies in UK and USA.
Once more, I pray that Adelola Adeloye’s soul will find a peaceful resting place in the bosom of our Lord. AMEN.
EMERITUS PROFESSOR T. O. OGUNLESI.
