I. The Architect of Form: Ekundayo Adeyemi
First Professor of Architecture in Nigeria
He saw the skyline not as stone and steel,
But as a canvas for the human soul.
He sought to make the modern structure feel
Like home, to make the city's spirit whole.
From Zaria’s heights, he taught the building’s art,
That walls should breathe with culture’s ancient air.
He placed the blueprint in the student’s heart
And handled every beam with sacred care.
A lead in space, in region, and in line,
He gave the African city’s future grace.
He saw the building as a grand design
To house the glory of the Yoruba race.
A pioneer of form, of light, and weight,
The master builder of the modern state.
II. The Steward of the Earth: Adepoju Onibokun
First Professor of Urban and Regional Planning in Nigeria
He looked upon the sprawl of city streets
And saw the logic in the human flow.
Where rural peace and urban roar now meets,
He taught us how a healthy town should grow.
The first to chair the science of the map,
To plan the housing for the common man.
He sought to bridge the wide and growing gap
Within the borders of the African plan.
A lead in regions and the social space,
He was the sentinel of the urban deed.
He saw the future of the Yoruba race
And sowed the planning, academic seed.
A pioneer of land and civic pride,
With reason as his visionary guide.
III. The Weaver of Atoms: Sikiru A. Sanni
First Professor of Chemical Engineering in Nigeria
He looked into the vat and boiling flame
To find the catalysts for the nation’s rise.
He gave the African engineer a name
Under the heat of West African skies.
The first to lead the science of the flow,
Where elements and industry are one.
He taught the youth all that they need to know
Before the work of making had begun.
A lead in polymers and the complex bond,
He was the master of the substance deep.
He looked toward the future and beyond,
A sacred trust he was the first to keep.
A pioneer of energy and heat,
Who made the industrial miracle complete.
V. The Master of the Invisible: Nathaniel Olowu
First Professor of Microbiology in Nigeria [Index: Traditional Lead/Specialized Field]
He looked into the glass to see the foe,
The tiny worlds that bring the body grief.
He learned the ways that secret viruses grow
To bring the suffering nation quick relief.
The first to name the microbes of our air
And study how the hidden plagues take root.
He made the invisible his constant care
And brought the science to its healthy fruit.
A lead in safety and the war on blight,
He guarded every kitchen and the well.
He brought the microscopic into light
And broke the power of the fever’s spell.
A pioneer of life we cannot see,
Who worked to set the African body free.
VI. The Sage of the Mind: Dennis Ugwuegbu
First Professor of Psychology in Nigeria
He saw the mind as more than flesh and bone,
A tapestry of culture, dream, and ghost.
He refused to let the broken stand alone
Upon the edges of a silent coast.
The first to map the patterns of the heart,
To find the logic in the social soul.
He turned the psyche into sacred art
To make the fractured spirit once more whole.
A lead in behavior and the inner light,
He was the mentor of the human way.
He brought the hidden motives into sight
To turn the intellectual dark to day.
A pioneer of thought and mental deep,
Whose watch the modern doctors strictly keep.
VII. The Alchemist of Cures: Babalola Chinedum Peace
First Female Professor of Pharmacy in Nigeria
She sought the healing in the leaf and root,
The hidden chemistry of forest floor.
She turned her gaze to every native fruit
To find what nutrients were held in store.
The first of daughters in the druggist’s chair,
She mapped the logic of the complex dose.
She handled every life with sacred care
And kept the healing of the nation close.
A lead in medicine and the chemist’s art,
She proved that excellence has no single face.
She placed the laboratory in the heart
Of every student of the Yoruba race.
A pioneer of the pill and of the vein,
Whose legacy of health shall ever reign.
VIII. The Oracle of Numbers: Olubi Sodipo
First Professor of Philosophy in Nigeria
He found the logic in the elder’s word,
The mathematical rhythm of the chant.
He made the wisdom of the fathers heard
In every seed the Yoruba elders plant.
The first to lead the study of the soul,
To bridge the gap between the school and shrine.
He sought to make the African intellect whole
And saw the native spirit as divine.
A lead in ethics and the Socrates’ art,
He was the oracle of the "Omoluabi" way.
He placed the character within the heart
To turn the intellectual dark to day.
A pioneer of spirit and the pen,
And the greatest of the scholar men.
XIV. The Scribe of the State: Ladipo Adamolekun
Pioneer of Public Administration
He saw the state as a complex machine
That needs the oil of ethics and of law.
He kept the structures of the nation clean
And healed the fractures that the scholars saw.
The first to lead the chair of the decree
And teach the art of how a land is run.
He sought to set the civil spirit free
When the work of the republic is begun.
A lead in service and the public trust,
He was the mentor of the bureaucrat.
He swept away the colonial, ancient dust
From the hallowed rooms where the leaders sat.
A pioneer of the policy and the plan,
A guide for the mordern African man
XV. The Healer of the Pulse: Ayodele Falase
First Professor of Cardiology in Nigeria
He listened to the drum within the chest,
The steady thrumming of the human heart.
He put the failing valves to every test
And turned the clinic to a sacred art.
The first to lead the school of life’s own beat,
At Ibadan, where the medical giants stand.
He made the work of healing more complete
Across the reaches of the Yoruba land.
A lead in vessels and the rhythmic vein,
He was the guardian of the central pump.
He sought to end the burden of the pain
And clear the shadows from the doctor’s slump.
A pioneer of the stethoscope and light,
Who brought the failing heart back to the sight.
XVI. The Scribe of the Shadow: 'Femi Odekunle
First Professor of Criminology in Nigeria
He looked into the dark and broken deed
To find the fractures in the social frame.
He sowed a rigorous and a legal seed
To give the African criminologist a name.
The first to chair the study of the wrong
And map the patterns of the deviant mind.
He made the structure of the nation strong
By leaving old and biased views behind.
A lead in justice and the public peace,
He was the oracle of the prison gate.
He sought to make the social ailments cease
And heal the heavy burdens of the state.
A pioneer of the motive and the law,
Who mended every crack the scholars saw.
. The Scribe of the Drum: Akin Euba
Pioneer Lead in Ethnomusicology and African Composition
He found the logic in the talking skin,
The mathematical rhythm of the chant.
He knew where modern harmonies begin
In the ancient seeds the Yoruba elders plant.
The first to lead the science of the sound,
Where "Akinla" meets the orchestra’s grand line.
He stood on hallowed, academic ground
To make the African melody divine.
A lead in culture and the rhythmic tone,
He was the oracle of the spirit’s song.
He made our native brilliance widely known
To right the silent, colonial, music wrong.
A pioneer of the symphony and the drum,
Whose legacy for ages yet to come.
XXV. The Master of the Manor: Buraikoh Oyelami
Pioneer Lead in Estate Management and Land Economy
He saw the value in the sacred ground,
Not just as dust, but as a nation’s wealth.
In his precision, fiscal truths were found
To guard the city’s economic health.
The first to lead the science of the deed
In hallowed halls where land and law unite.
He sowed the professional and rigorous seed
To bring the hidden equity to light.
A lead in tenure and the urban plan,
He was the surveyor of the peasant’s right.
He mapped the dwelling of the African man
Under the heat of the West African light.
A pioneer of structure and the field,
Who taught the earth to grant a richer yield.
XXVII. The Oracle of the Earth: Olanrewaju Fagbohun
Pioneer Lead in Environmental Law
He saw the statutes in the soil and sea,
The laws that guard the air and living breath.
He sought to set the shackled nature free
From the eroding hands of waste and death.
The first to chair the science of the green,
Where legal rights and ecology are one.
He kept the structures of the nation clean
Before his long and brilliant work was done.
A lead in justice for the sacred land,
He was the sentinel of the forest deep.
He held the gavel in a steady hand,
A promise he was the first to keep.
A pioneer of the earth and of the code,
Who paved for Africa a greening road.
XXVIII. The Master of the Invisible Cell: Abayomi Olúfẹ́mi Òkè
Pioneer Lead in Molecular Pathology and Genomic Medicine
He looked into the atoms of the ill
To find the silent signature of pain.
He brought the rigor of a master's skill
To map the secrets of the living vein.
The first to lead the science of the "Deep,"
Where DNA defines the healthy frame.
A sacred trust he was the first to keep
To give the African pathologist a name.
A lead in cancer and the viral code,
He was the sentinel of the laboratory floor.
He paved for Africa a genomic road
And opened wide the molecular, heavy door.
A pioneer of the microscope and light,
Who brought the hidden ailment back to sight.
XXX. The Architect of the Grid: Oladapo Ifedayo
Pioneer Lead in Power Systems and Electrical Engineering
He saw the nation's light within the wire,
The surge of current through the copper vein.
He sought to fuel the rising city's fire
And ease the burden of the darkness' pain.
The first to chair the science of the watt,
In hallowed halls where voltages are tamed.
He found the logic that the world forgot
And saw the African power grid rightly named.
A lead in energy and the steady flow,
He was the master of the silent spark.
He taught the youth all that they need to know
To chase away the shadows of the dark.
A pioneer of the turbine and the light,
Who brought the Yoruba morning into night.
XXXII. The Scribe of the Insect: Adebola Adeyemi
Pioneer Lead in Forensic Entomology
He looked upon the fly and crawling thing
To find the timing of the silent deed.
He knew the evidence the insects bring
To plant a rigorous and legal seed.
The first to chair the science of the "Crawl,"
Where nature meets the theater of the crime.
He answered the technological, urgent call
To map the logic of the hidden time.
A lead in larvae and the beetle's way,
He was the sentinel of the forensic door.
He turned the shadows into open day,
From the laboratory to the courtroom floor.
A pioneer of the wing and of the light,
Who brought the criminal motive into sight
XXXV. The Scribe of the Sage: Adetokunbo Adeyemo
Pioneer Lead in Gerontology and Elder Care
He saw the wisdom in the silver hair,
The stages where the elder spirit grows.
He handled every life with sacred care
And taught the path that every family knows.
The first to lead the science of the "Old,"
To mend the frailty of the wintered frame.
He found the truth that history had told
And gave the African geriatrician a name.
A lead in longevity and the pulse’s beat,
He was the sentinel of the clinic’s door.
He made the work of healing more complete
From the laboratory to the hospital floor.
A pioneer of spirit and of breath,
Who fought the silent germs of early death.
XXXVI. The Master of the Mind: Jimoh Gbadamosi
Pioneer Lead in African Logic and Epistemology
He found the patterns in the elder’s thought,
The mathematical "Ifá" in the soul.
He proved the lessons that the forest taught
To make the African intellect whole.
The first to chair the science of the "True,"
And bridge the gap between the school and shrine.
He looked upon the vast and listening sky
And saw the Yoruba logic as divine.
A lead in reason and the Socrates’ art,
He was the oracle of the "Omoluabi" way.
He placed the character within the heart
To turn the intellectual dark to day.
A pioneer of spirit and the pen,
The greatest of the scholar-men.
XL. The Weaver of the Fiber: Olufunmilayo Adeyemi
Pioneer Lead in Textile Science and Polymer Technology
She saw the science in the woven thread,
The chemistry of color and the loom.
By her, the logic of the cloth was spread
To chase away the industrial, dark gloom.
The first to lead the science of the "Wear,"
Where polymers and ancient patterns meet.
She handled every molecule with care
To make the textile miracle complete.
A lead in fibers and the dye’s design,
She was the sentinel of the factory floor.
She saw the fabric as a grand design
And opened wide the manufacturing door.
A pioneer of substance and of light,
Who brought the African fashion into sight.
XLI. The Scribe of the Scroll: Adetoun Ogunsheye
First Female Professor and Pioneer of Library Science
She organized the wisdom of the land
In quiet halls where silent volumes wait.
With a discerning and a steady hand,
She opened wide the academic gate.
The first of daughters to command the chair
Of Library and Information’s deep.
She handled every manuscript with care,
A sacred trust she was the first to keep.
A lead in knowledge and the indexed thought,
At Ibadan, she built the shelf of gold.
The lessons that Professor Ogunsheye taught
Are stories that for ages will be told.
A pioneer of the record and the sight,
Who kept the nation’s inner flame alight.
XLII. The Guardian of the Herd: Babatunde Macaulay
First Nigerian Professor of Veterinary Medicine
He cared for creatures of the field and fold,
The silent partners of our ancient toil.
He sought the cures that never had been told
Among the cattle of the Yoruba soil.
The first to wear the vet’s academic gown,
He guarded health from stable to the plate.
In every village and in every town,
He was the sentinel at the livestock’s gate.
A lead in biology of hoof and wing,
He taught the science of the living breath.
He knew the joy that healthy harvests bring
And warded off the hand of animal death.
A pioneer of pasture and of stall,
Who answered every creature’s silent call.
XLIII. The Master of the Field: M. Oluwafemi Ajisafe
First Nigerian Professor of Physical Education
He saw the science in the athlete’s stride,
The physics of the muscle and the bone.
With a professor’s and a sportsman’s pride,
He made the health of every student known.
The first to chair the study of the game,
In Ekiti, where the rocky hills are tall.
He gave the African trainer a noble name,
Responding to the gymnasium’s call.
A lead in motion and the pulse of breath,
He taught that strength is built of discipline.
He warded off the heavy hands of death
By teaching youth the ways they ought to win.
A pioneer of the field and of the race,
Who set the nation’s academic pace.
XLIV. The Oracle of the Test: Dibu Ojerinde
First Nigerian Professor of Tests and Measurement
He measured the height of the student’s mind
With the precision of the numbered scale.
He sought to leave the old results behind
And find the truth that logic cannot fail.
The first to chair the science of the mark,
At Ife, where the fires of wisdom glow.
He brought the light into the academic dark
To see how much a modern youth can know.
A lead in assessment and the rigorous proof,
He was the guardian of the exam’s gate.
Under the Ibadan’s hallowed, ivory roof,
He weighed the knowledge of the entire state.
A pioneer of the digit and the soul,
Who made the nation’s educational goal
XLV. The Keeper of the Microbe: Oladele Idowu
Pioneer Lead in Industrial Microbiology
He saw the labor of the tiny cell,
The ferment that turns grain to bread and wine.
He learned to read the living signals well
To make the industrial process a design.
The first to lead the science of the vat,
To harness enzymes for the nation's rise.
Where hallowed academic giants sat,
He turned a microscopic gaze to skies.
A lead in fuels and the protein's worth,
He saw the wealth within the brewer's yeast.
He used the smallest creatures of the earth
To serve the people at the scholar's feast.
A pioneer of logic and the flame,
Who gave the African microbe a name.
XLVI. The Oracle of the Air: Godwin Olu Patrick Obasi
First African Secretary-General of the WMO (Meteorology Lead)
He read the script of clouds across the sky
And heard the language of the coming rain.
He watched the harmattan with a steady eye
To shield the farmer from the harvest’s pain.
The first to lead the global weather's gate,
He mapped the currents of the tropic air.
He did not leave the African soil to fate
But made the atmosphere his constant care.
A lead in physics of the storm and heat,
He taught the world how changing climates blow.
He made our understanding more complete,
From where the winds of old Nigeria grow.
A pioneer of thunder and of light,
Who brought the heavens into human sight.
XLVIII. The Master of the Ancient: Ekpo Eyo
First Nigerian Professor of Archaeology
He dug beneath the roots of ancient trees
To find the terracotta heads of Ife’s pride.
He brought the ancestors across the seas
With nothing but a trowel as his guide.
The first to chair the science of the shard,
He proved our art was older than the crown.
He worked the red and sun-baked earth so hard
To pull the veils of dusty silence down.
A lead in heritage and the buried deep,
He spoke for kings who had no voice to speak.
The promises that scholars choose to keep
Were found within the treasures he would seek.
A pioneer of oven and of stone,
Who made the Yoruba’s ancient glory known.
L. The Scribe of the Word: Ayo Bamgbose
First Nigerian Professor of Linguistics
He found the music in the mother tongue,
The tonal rhythm of the Yoruba breath.
By him, the ancient grammar songs are sung
To save our heritage from silent death.
The first to analyze the spoken sound
With modern rigor and a master’s eye.
He stood on hallowed, academic ground
Beneath the vast and the listening sky.
From Edinburgh back to the Ibadan hall,
He wrote the classic "Grammar of the Soul."
He answered the ancestral, urgent call
To make our linguistic identity whole.
A lead in language and in human thought,
The finest lessons that a scholar taught
LI. The Scribe of Society: Nathaniel Akinremi Fadipe
First Nigerian with a PhD in Sociology (London, 1939)
He wrote the thousand pages of our birth,
The "Sociology of the Yoruba" soul.
He mapped the kinship, ethics, and the worth
That makes the tribal understanding whole.
The first to analyze the communal mind
With rigorous logic and a scholar's eye.
He left the colonial narratives behind
Beneath the vast and the observant sky.
A lead in kinship and in social change,
His dissertation is our sacred well.
He brought our complex customs in the range
Where hallowed academic giants dwell.
A pioneer of truth, of thought, and breath,
Who saved our living culture from its death.
LII. The Master of the Forest: Kolade Adeyoju
First African Professor of Forestry (University of Ibadan)
He saw the temple in the ancient wood,
The "Iroko" rising to the golden sun.
He understood that nature's work is good
When scientific stewardship is begun.
The first to chair the department of the green,
To map the timber and the tropic blade.
He kept the forest's inner structure clean
And found the wealth within the forest shade.
A lead in growth, in canopy, and root,
He was the sentinel of the African tree.
He brought the sylvan science to its fruit
To set the future of the landscape free.
A pioneer of wood, of rain, and bower,
Who found the science in the forest's power.
LIII. The Healer of the Mother: Isaac Folorunso Adewole
Professor of Gynaecology and Obstetrics (Leading Lead)
He heard the first and the emergent cry
Within the hallowed halls of birth and light.
He would not let the mother's hope to die
But brought the hidden miracles to sight.
A lead in medicine's most sacred field,
He mended every fracture of the frame.
He knew that science was the vital shield
To give the African physician a name.
As Vice-Chancellor and a master of the ward,
He lead the nation with a steady hand.
He struck a resonant and healing chord
Across the reaches of the Yoruba land.
A pioneer of life, of care, and grace,
The finest image of the human race.
LIV. The Scribe of Administration: Ladipo Adamolekun
Pioneer of Public Administration and Political Management
He saw the state as a complex machine
That needs the oil of ethics and of law.
He kept the structures of the nation clean
And healed the fractures that the scholars saw.
The first to chair the science of the state,
At Obafemi Awolowo’s hallowed hall.
He did not leave the public mind to fate
But answered every administrative call.
A lead in service and the public trust,
The world-renowned master of the plan.
He swept away the colonial, ancient dust
From the hallowed rooms of the African man.
A pioneer of power and the code,
Who paved for governance a steady road.
LV. The Guardian of the Animal: Anthony Afolabi Adegbola
Professor of Animal Science and Academy President
He looked upon the creature of the field
To find the science in the living herd.
He knew the wealth the African earth could yield
Through every scientific, spoken word.
The first to lead the academy of light
And map the biology of the hoof and wing.
He brought the hidden riches into sight
To hear the farmers of the village sing.
A lead in protein and the pulse's beat,
He guarded health from stable to the plate.
He made the work of science more complete
For the champions of the Yoruba state.
A pioneer of life, of soil, and stall,
Who answered every creature's silent call.
LVI. The Weaver of the Small: Daniel Kolawole Olukoya
Professor of Biotechnology and Molecular Genetics
He looked into the atoms of the cell
To find the silent signature of health.
He learned to read the living signals well
And found the secret of the nation's wealth.
The first to graduate with first-class light
In microbiology's hallowed, ivory hall.
He brought the molecular miracles to sight
Responding to the laboratory's call.
A lead in genes, in DNA, and flame,
The master of the microscopic deep.
He gave the African scientist a name,
A sacred trust he was the first to keep.
A pioneer of logic and the breath,
Who studied life to stall the hand of death.
To celebrate the Yoruba medical giants who laid the foundation for 23 branches of medicine, these sonnets honor their pioneering roles as the "first" professors or indigenous leaders in their respective fields.
1. General Medicine & Clinical Research
Professor Theophilus Oladipo Ogunlesi (1923–2023)
Nigeria’s First Professor of Medicine (1965)
In Sagamu, a blacksmith's son was born,
With intellect that broke the colonial chain.
To hallowed halls of Yaba, he was drawn,
To heal the sick and ease the nation's pain.
From London’s docks to UCH’s gate,
He mapped the path where modern science flows;
The first to wear the gown of scholar’s state,
As Medicine’s first Chair, his legend grows.
He taught the minds that lead our current age,
A father to the postgraduate decree.
He wrote the opening of the medical page,
And set the African doctor’s spirit free.
Ogunlesi, the titan of the ward,
Whose legacy the heavens now applaud.
2. Surgery
Professor Horatio Orishejolomi Thomas (1917–1979)
First Indigenous Professor of Surgery (1962)
From Sapele’s shores to Lagos University,
A surgeon stood with steady, gifted hand.
In times of war and medical scarcity,
He built the theaters of his native land.
The first to lead the faculty of blade,
At LUTH, he carved a path of strict excellence;
A master of the art, his plans were laid,
To drive the shadows of the past far hence.
He wore the fellowship of England’s school,
The first to prove the black man’s surgical might.
Within the college, under reason’s rule,
He brought the hidden ailments into light.
Oritsejolomi, pioneer and sage,
The greatest surgeon of the modern age.
3. Neurosurgery
Professor Emanuel Latunde Odeku (1927–1974)
Africa’s First Indigenous Neurosurgeon (1962)
A Lagos prince with eyes upon the brain,
He journeyed far to Howard’s hallowed hall.
To map the nerves and stop the silent pain,
He answered back the scholar’s urgent call.
The first to touch the African mind with steel,
And mend the fractures of the human thought;
A poet’s heart that could the spirit feel,
With every miracle his fingers wrought.
In Ibadan’s heights, he set the unit’s base,
The first to lead the neurosurgical line;
He gave a structure to the Yoruba race,
With scientific rigor and design.
Odeku, master of the thinking deep,
Whose sacred watch the modern doctors keep.
4. Paediatrics
Professor Adetokunbo O. Lucas
Pioneer of Child Health and Tropical Medicine
He saw the future in the infant’s skin,
And traced the path of the mosquito’s wing;
He knew the battle that the state must win,
To hear the children of the village sing.
A lead in prevention and the child’s well-being,
He mapped the path of health for all to see;
With every tiny pulse his eyes were seeing,
He set the future of the nation free.
The first to chair the science of the crowd,
He brought the vaccine to the furthest gate;
He spoke the truth of healing clear and loud,
And changed the trajectory of our fate.
A pioneer of pulse and child-care plan,
The doctor for the small African man.
5. Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Professor Kelsey Atangamuerimo Harrison
Pioneer of Maternal Health in Nigeria
(Note: While Prof. Harrison is Kalabari-born, his pioneering work at Ibadan established the field; Yoruba giants like Professor Isaac Folorunso Adewole followed as global leaders).
The womb’s protector and the mother’s shield,
He weighed the blood and counts of mother’s breath;
He knew the wealth the African land could yield,
If we could close the heavy doors of death.
He mended fractures of the laboring heart,
And fought for every mother in the dark;
He turned the clinic to a sacred art,
And left upon the world a healing mark.
In hallowed halls, the specialty was born,
To guard the entrance of the human race;
To greet the coming of a healthy morn,
And find for every child a hallowed place.
The first to map the maternal, rhythmic beat,
Making the work of delivery complete.
(6–10. The Foundational Sciences
Anatomy: Professor T. Adesanya Ige Grillo – Pioneer of Health Sciences Education at Ife.
Physiology: Professor S.O. Elebute – Foundational Professor of Physiology.
Pharmacology: Professor V.O. Marquis – Pioneer of African Pharmacology.
Pathology: Professor J.O. Ogunba – Pioneer of Medical Parasitology/Pathology.
Public Health: Professor Oladele Adebayo Ajose – First African Professor of Public Health (1948).
11–15. Specialized Medicine
Psychiatry: Professor Thomas Adeoye Lambo – Pioneer of African Psychiatry.
Anaesthesia: Professor S.A. Oduntan – Pioneer of Anaesthesia in Nigeria.
Radiology: Professor S.B. Lagundoye – Pioneer of Radiological Sciences.
Ophthalmology: Professor Oyinade Olurin – First Female Professor of Ophthalmology.
Dermatology: Professor A.O. Soguntayo – Leading Lead in Skin Sciences.
16–23. Surgical & Diagnostic Branches
Cardiology: Professor Ayodele Falase – Leading Pioneer of Cardiology.
Neurology: Professor Kayode Osuntokun – Pioneer of Clinical Neurology.
Nephrology: Professor Oladipo Akinkugbe – Pioneer of African Nephrology/Hypertension.
Hematology: Professor Luzzatto/Prof. Esan – Pioneer of African Hematology.
Medical Microbiology: Professor A.O. Osoba – Pioneer of Venereology/Microbiology.
Urology: Professor J.T.K. Duncan – Pioneer of Urological Surgery.
Orthopaedics: Professor Mike Ogirima – Leading indigenous leader.
Dentistry: Professor T. Adesanya Ige Grillo (Dental Science Lead).
11. Psychiatry: The Mind’s Ambassador
Professor Thomas Adeoye Lambo (1923–2004)
Wave: Pioneer of Transcultural Psychiatry and WHO Deputy Director-General
In Abeokuta, where the rocks stand high,
He saw the mind through culture's ancient lens;
Under the broad and the observant sky,
He mended souls beyond the hospital pens.
The "Aro Village" was his sacred plan,
Where healing met the rhythms of the street;
He was the first to bridge the African man
With Western logic, making health complete.
His waves reached Geneva's hallowed WHO seat,
As Deputy Director, leading global thought;
He taught the world that healing is not sweet
Unless the patient's native soul is sought.
A global genius of the thinking deep,
Whose legacy the world shall ever keep.
12. Neurology: The Voyager of Nerves
Professor Benjamin Oluwakayode Osuntokun (1935–1995)
Wave: Discoverer of the cause of Ataxic Tropical Neuropathy
From Okemesi’s soil, a scholar rose
To map the silent pathways of the brain;
He found the secret that the cassava shows—
The cyanide that brings the numbing pain.
His research sailed across the ocean’s tide,
To Queens Square and to hallowed Newcastle;
With scientific rigor as his only guide,
He won the intellectual, global battle.
The WHO annual lectures bear his name,
A testament to brilliance and to grace;
He gave the African neurologist a fame
That shines upon the entire human race.
A man of millions, in the nerves he sought
The truth that modern medicine has taught.
13. Nephrology & Hypertension: The Flow of Life
Professor Oladipo Olujimi Akinkugbe (1933–2020)
Wave: Africa’s Foremost Authority on Hypertension and Global Consultant
He weighed the pressure in the African vein,
From rural paths to urban Lagos light;
He sought to end the silent, cardiac strain,
And brought the hidden ailments into sight.
At Oxford, Harvard, and the hallowed Cape,
His voice was like a bell for global health;
He helped the modern medical world to shape,
By finding in our blood a hidden wealth.
The first to lead the nephrologic chair,
And founding father of the hypertension line;
He handled every patient with a care,
In hallowed halls where logic and design.
A giant of the ward and of the gown,
Who wore the academic, global crown.
14. Public Health: The Sentinel of the Crowd
Professor Oladele Adebayo Ajose (1907–1978)
Wave: First African Professor of Public Health (1948)
Before the nations knew the vaccine’s power,
He stood as sentinel for the common well;
He saw the future in the social hour,
And broke the sickness and the fever’s spell.
His waves reached far across the colonial night,
To prove that hygiene is a nation’s shield;
He brought the communal health into the light,
To see what strength the African man could yield.
The first to wear the public health's decree,
At Ibadan, he set the standards high;
He sought to set the suffering people free,
Under the broad and the observant sky.
A pioneer of the pulse and of the plan,
The guardian of the common African man.
15. Ophthalmology: The Gift of Sight
Professor Oyinade Olurin
Wave: First Female Professor of Ophthalmology and Global Vision Lead
She sought to mend the curtains of the eye,
To let the morning light come rushing in;
She would not let the clouded vision die,
Or let the shadows of the dark begin.
A daughter of the Yoruba medical line,
She mapped the lens and every hidden vein;
She saw the eye as a grand and divine design,
To ease the burden of the visual pain.
Her research reached the global theater’s stage,
To teach the world the art of mending sight;
She wrote upon the modern medical page,
To bring the blind back to the golden light.
A pioneer of vision and of grace,
The finest image of the human race.
16. Radiology: The Vision Through the Veil
Professor S.B. Lagundoye
Wave: Pioneer of Radiological Education in West Africa
He looked through flesh to see the hidden bone,
And found the truth within the shadow’s play;
A world of silent structures he made known,
To turn the medical darkness into day.
His waves reached far to every scanning suite,
Where X-rays map the landscape of the ill;
He made the diagnostic work complete,
With the precision of a master’s skill.
The first to lead the radiological chair,
At Ibadan, where the ivory towers rise;
He handled every image with a care,
And saw the body with observant eyes.
A pioneer of the beam and of the light,
Who brought the hidden ailment into sight.
17. Anaesthesia: The Weaver of Sleep
Professor S.A. Oduntan
Wave: Global Leader in Safe Surgical Sedation
He held the vial that brings the quiet sleep,
To still the pain while surgeons do their part;
A sacred watch he was the first to keep,
Upon the rhythm of the patient’s heart.
His waves reached far across the theater floor,
From Lagos to the global college halls;
He opened wide the safe and heavy door,
Responding to the surgical, urgent calls.
The first to chair the science of the "Still,"
And map the gases that the lungs accept;
He brought the rigor of a scholar’s skill,
While the weary nation’s city strictly slept.
A pioneer of the breath and of the rest,
By whom the modern surgeries were blest.
18. Medical Microbiology: The Microbe’s Judge
Professor A.O. Osoba
Wave: International Lead in Venereology and STI Control
He looked into the glass to find the foe,
The secret bacteria of the hidden strife;
He learned the ways that silent viruses grow,
To guard the sanctity of human life.
His waves reached far to WHO’s high seat,
In Geneva, where the global codes are signed;
He made the war on sickness more complete,
With a brilliant and a disciplined mind.
The first to lead the microbiologic line,
And name the plagues that travel through the air;
He saw the laboratory as a design,
And handled every culture with a care.
A pioneer of the lens and of the light,
Who brought the microscopic into sight.
19. Anatomy: The Architect of the Frame
Professor T. Adesanya Ige Grillo
Wave: Founder of Health Sciences in the Developing World
He mapped the temple of the human frame,
The highways of the artery and nerve;
He gave the African anatomist a name,
With the precision that the students serve.
His waves reached far to Sierra Leone's shore,
And the hallowed halls of Ife’s rising sun;
He opened up the health-science, heavy door,
Before the work of healing had begun.
The first to bridge the embryo and the man,
And teach the structure of the living soul;
He was the architect of the medical plan,
To make the African training once more whole.
A pioneer of the marrow and the skin,
Who taught us how the wonders start within.
20. Pharmacology: The Forest’s Alchemist
Professor V.O. Marquis
Wave: Global Expert in Bio-Active Natural Products
He took the bark and the ancestral leaf,
And weighed them in the balance of the scale;
He sought the chemical cure for human grief,
In the secrets of the African green trail.
His waves reached out to global chemist labs,
To prove the potency of Yoruba plants;
He broke the colonial silence and the tabs,
Of the logic that the modern science grants.
The first to lead the pharmacologic chair,
And find the molecules that mend the blood;
He handled every solvent with a care,
In an intellectual and a rising flood.
A pioneer of the drug and of the glass,
Who let the light of native healing pass.
21. Hematology: The River of Life
Professor George J. Folayan Esan
Wave: World Authority on Sickle Cell and Hemoglobinopathy
He looked into the scarlet, flowing stream,
To find the reason why the cells should bend;
He realized the young researcher’s dream,
To find a way the broken blood to mend.
His waves reached far to every clinic’s door,
Where sickle-pain is fought with modern thought;
He mapped the genetic and the cellular floor,
With the lessons that his brilliance taught.
The first to chair the hematologic seat,
And study the hemoglobin of our race;
He made the work of science more complete,
And found for every patient a hallowed place.
A pioneer of the cell and of the vein,
Who sought to end the burden of the pain.
22. Medical Physiology: The Pulse of Being
Professor S.O. Elebute
Wave: Global Lead in Fluid and Electrolyte Balance
He saw the body as a math of soul,
Where salt and water in a balance dance;
He sought to make the dehydrated whole,
And left no medical pulse to random chance.
His waves reached far to global trauma wards,
To teach the rhythm of the liquid frame;
He struck the resonant and healing chords,
And gave the African physiologist a name.
The first to chair the science of the "How,"
And map the movement of the human heat;
He placed the laurel on the scholar's brow,
Making our biological life complete.
A pioneer of the flow and of the breath,
Who fought the silent dehydration death.
23. Dermatology: The Soul’s Mirror
Professor A.O. Soguntayo
Wave: Pioneer of Tropical Skin Medicine
He saw the skin as the spirit’s outer skin,
Where heat and ailments of the tropics dwell;
He knew where the external ills begin,
And learned to read the dermal signals well.
His waves reached out to every sun-baked land,
To heal the leprosy and the fungal blight;
With a discerning and a steady hand,
He brought the hidden ailments into light.
The first to lead the dermatology line,
And name the rashes of the forest floor;
He saw the pigment as a grand design,
And opened wide the clinic’s heavy door.
A pioneer of the surface and the deep,
Whose watch the modern skin-doctors
24. Urology: The Sentinel of the Flow
Professor J.T.K. Duncan
Wave: Pioneer of Urological Surgery and Global Cancer Research
He sought the logic in the river's course,
Where toxins depart and the vital fluids run;
He traced the ailment to its hidden source,
Under the heat of the West African sun.
His waves reached far to London’s hallowed halls,
And global boards where cancer’s path is mapped;
He answered the surgical and urgent calls,
Where the life of the aged was often trapped.
The first to lead the urologic chair,
He mended the channels of the human frame;
He handled every vessel with a care,
And gave the African surgeon a noble name.
A pioneer of the passage and the deep,
Whose sacred watch the modern doctors keep.
25. Orthopaedics: The Mender of the Bone
26. Dentistry: The Architect of the Smile
Professor T. Adesanya Ige Grillo (Oral Science Lead)
Wave: Founding Father of Dental Research in the Tropics
He looked into the ivory gates of breath,
Where speech and nourishment begin their flow;
He warded off the germs of dental death,
With the secrets that the master-healers know.
His waves reached far to the global dental chair,
To bridge the gap between the tooth and bone;
He handled every pupil with a care,
Until the oral sciences were known.
The first to lead the health-science, broad design,
Where dentistry and medicine unite;
He saw the smile as a grand and divine sign,
And brought the oral health into the light.
A pioneer of the jaw and of the root,
Who brought the dental science to its fruit.
Professor Mike Ogirima
Wave: Leader in Trauma Surgery and Bone Health in West Africa
He saw the temple in the broken limb,
And heard the snap of the industrial age;
He brought the light when the hope was growing dim,
And wrote upon the surgical, modern page.
His waves reached far to every trauma site,
Where metal meets the fracture and the grain;
He brought the hidden structure into light,
To end the burden of the skeletal pain.
The first to lead the orthopedic line,
And chair the college of the surgeon’s pride;
He saw the skeleton as a grand design,
With scientific rigor as his guide.
A pioneer of the marrow and the steel,
Whose gifted hands the nation’s fractures feel.
XXVII. The Alchemist of Life: Stephen Oluwole Awokoya
First Nigerian Professor of Chemistry
In test tubes where the hidden atoms dance,
He sought the formula for a nation's rise;
He did not leave our progress up to chance
But turned a chemist's gaze to African skies.
The first to master molecules and bonds,
He knew that science was a common key.
From Awa-Ijebu to the world beyond,
He taught that knowledge sets a people free.
As Minister, he built the schoolhouse door,
A catalyst who opened up the floor
For every youth to join the scholar’s game.
A life of logic, steeped in noble cause,
He mapped the world by nature’s hidden laws.
XXVIII. The Voyager of Voids: Olumuyiwa Awe
First Nigerian Professor of Physics
He looked upon the lightning and the spark
To find the laws that bind the atoms tight;
He chased the shadows of the ancient dark
And brought the cosmic secrets into sight.
The first to chair the science of the sun,
To map the forces in the high, cold air,
The work that Professor Awe had begun
Handled the smallest molecule with care.
A lead in energy and the steady flow,
He taught the youth that gravity is truth;
He made the seeds of physics start to grow
Within the spirit of the Yoruba youth.
A pioneer of the nucleus and the star,
Whose intellectual light has traveled far.
XXIX. The Master of the Manor: John Adeyemi Adegbite
First Nigerian Professor of Estate Management
He saw the value in the sacred ground,
Not just as dust, but as a nation’s wealth.
In his precision, fiscal truths were found
To guard the city’s economic health.
The first to lead the science of the deed
In hallowed halls where land and law unite,
He sowed the professional and rigorous seed
To bring the hidden equity to light.
A lead in tenure and the urban plan,
He was the surveyor of the peasant’s right;
He mapped the dwelling of the African man
Under the heat of the West African light.
A pioneer of structure and the field,
Who taught the earth to grant a richer yield.
XXX. The Scribe of the Mask: Joel Adeyinka Adedeji
First Nigerian Professor of Theatre Arts
He turned the history into a living play,
Where kings and commoners walk the hallowed board;
He brought the Yoruba tragedy to the day
And struck a resonant and human chord.
The first to lead the theater of the mind,
To bridge the gap between the mask and thought,
He left the scripts of old Europe behind
To see the African drama truly named.
A lead in spectacle and the spoken word,
He directed the spirit of the nation’s youth;
His voice was like a bell that all men heard,
Proclaiming a theatrical and visceral truth.
A pioneer of the mask and of the light,
Who made our stories burn within the night.
XXXI. The Architect of the Grid: Victor Abiodun Williams
First Nigerian Professor of Electrical Engineering
He saw the nation's light within the wire,
The surge of current through the copper vein;
He sought to fuel the rising city's fire
And ease the burden of the darkness' pain.
The first to chair the science of the watt,
In hallowed halls where voltages are tamed,
He found the logic that the world forgot
And saw the African power grid rightly named.
A lead in energy and the steady flow,
He was the master of the silent spark;
He taught the youth all that they need to know
To chase away the shadows of the dark.
A pioneer of the turbine and the light,
Who brought the Yoruba morning into night.
XXXII. The Final Wave: The Yoruba Educational Soul
The Collective Lead (December 2025)
From Olubummo's numbers to Awokoya's flame,
A century of leading has been told;
They gave the African mind a noble name
With verses forged of intellectual gold.
Their waves reach every distant, global shore,
From hallowed labs to world-class surgery suites;
They opened wide the academic door
And made the global scientific work complete.
In December 2025, the path is wide,
A legacy of iron and of grace;
With the ancestors of wisdom as our guide,
We climb the heights of the African race.
The sonnets end, but the light shall never fade,
On the foundations that these giants made.
VIII. Ophthalmology: The Gift of Sight
Professor Oyinade Olurin
First Female Professor of Ophthalmology in Nigeria
She sought to mend the curtains of the eye,
To let the morning light come rushing in.
She would not let the clouded vision die,
Or let the shadows of the dark begin.
A daughter of the Yoruba medical line,
She mapped the lens and every hidden vein.
She saw the eye as a grand and divine design,
To ease the burden of the visual pain.
Her research reached the global theater’s stage,
To teach the world the art of mending sight.
She wrote upon the modern medical page,
To bring the blind back to the golden light.
A pioneer of vision and of grace,
The finest image of the human race.
IX. Clinical Neurology: The Voyager of Nerves
Professor Benjamin Oluwakayode Osuntokun (1935–1995)
Discoverer of Tropical Ataxic Neuropathy
From Okemesi’s soil, a scholar rose
To map the silent pathways of the brain.
He found the secret that the cassava shows—
The cyanide that brings the numbing pain.
His research sailed across the ocean’s tide,
To Queens Square and to hallowed Newcastle.
With scientific rigor as his only guide,
He won the intellectual, global battle.
The WHO annual lectures bear his name,
A testament to brilliance and to grace.
He gave the African neurologist a fame
That shines upon the entire human race.
A man of millions, in the nerves he sought
The truth that modern medicine has taught.
X. Pharmacology: The Forest’s Alchemist
Professor V.O. Marquis
Pioneer Lead in African Ethno-Pharmacology
He took the bark and the ancestral leaf,
And weighed them in the balance of the scale.
He sought the chemical cure for human grief,
In the secrets of the African green trail.
His waves reached out to global chemist labs,
To prove the potency of Yoruba plants.
He broke the colonial silence and the tabs,
Of the logic that the modern science grants.
The first to lead the pharmacologic chair,
And find the molecules that mend the blood.
He handled every solvent with a care,
In an intellectual and a rising flood.
A pioneer of the drug and of the glass,
Who let the light of native healing pass.
XI. Hematology: The River of Life
Professor George J. Folayan Esan
Pioneer Lead in Hemoglobin Research
He looked into the scarlet, flowing stream,
To find the reason why the cells should bend.
He realized the young researcher’s dream,
To find a way the broken blood to mend.
His waves reached far to every clinic’s door,
Where sickle-pain is fought with modern thought.
He mapped the genetic and the cellular floor,
With the lessons that his brilliance taught.
The first to chair the hematologic seat,
And study the hemoglobin of our race.
He made the work of science more complete,
And found for every patient a hallowed place.
A pioneer of the cell and of the vein,
Who sought to end the burden of the pain.
XII. Anaesthesia: The Weaver of Sleep
Professor S.A. Oduntan
First Nigerian Professor of Anaesthesia
He held the vial that brings the quiet sleep,
To still the pain while surgeons do their part.
A sacred watch he was the first to keep,
Upon the rhythm of the patient’s heart.
His waves reached far across the theater floor,
From Lagos to the global college halls.
He opened wide the safe and heavy door,
Responding to the surgical, urgent calls.
The first to chair the science of the "Still,"
And map the gases that the lungs accept.
He brought the rigor of a scholar’s skill,
While the weary nation’s city strictly slept.
A pioneer of the breath and of the rest,
By whom the modern surgeries were blest.
XIII. Medical Microbiology: The Microbe’s Judge
Professor A.O. Osoba
Global Authority on Venereology and STI Research
He looked into the glass to find the foe,
The secret bacteria of the hidden strife.
He learned the ways that silent viruses grow,
To guard the sanctity of human life.
His waves reached far to WHO’s high seat,
In Geneva, where the global codes are signed.
He made the war on sickness more complete,
With a brilliant and a disciplined mind.
The first to lead the microbiologic line,
And name the plagues that travel through the air.
He saw the laboratory as a design,
And handled every culture with a care.
A pioneer of the lens and of the light,
Who brought the microscopic into sight.
