Former President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has commended the University of Ibadan (UI) for honouring the late Professor Sanya Dojo Onabamiro, a former Minister of Education, for his significant contributions to science and education in Nigeria.
Onabamiro, who in the 1950s discovered the water flea Cyclops, a key host in the transmission of guinea worm, was posthumously celebrated as UI named its Postgraduate Administrative Building after him. The water flea species was named Dracunculus onabamiroides in his honour in international scientific journals.
The occasion also marked the 40th memorial lecture in honour of the late scientist and statesman, held yesterday at the University of Ibadan. Obasanjo, alongside other dignitaries, including former Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun; UI Vice Chancellor, Professor Kayode Adebowale; former UI Vice Chancellor, Professor Olufemi Bamiro; Professor Ayodele Desalu; Professor Ayo Bamgbose; and Professor Segun Onadeko, as well as family members of the deceased, including Professor Modupe Onadeko and Miss Enitan Onabamiro, unveiled the signage of the newly renamed Sanya Dojo Onabamiro Postgraduate College Building.
In his remarks, Chief Obasanjo expressed appreciation to the university, noting that while the honour might have come late, it was nevertheless significant.
“It might be late, but better late than never. Therefore, I thank the University of Ibadan,” he said. “My thanks again go to the family. May you all be survived by good children. Not forgetting your patriarch, parents, and grandparents is a very good thing. In our culture, we never forget our source. Any river that forgets its source will dry up.”
He added, “Whatever you are, your background will remain your background. You should continue to nourish it and appreciate it. Of course, Professor Onabamiro left a remarkable legacy that should never be forgotten.”
Professor Adebowale stated that the decision to name the building after Onabamiro was made in recognition of his outstanding contributions to the University of Ibadan and Nigerian society. He described Onabamiro as a pioneering scholar whose legacy deserved enduring recognition.
The day’s events also featured lectures in honour of the late academic, who also served as Minister of Agriculture and Natural Resources in the early 1960s. Onabamiro is notably remembered as the first black man to earn a doctorate from any British colonial university in Africa.
Chairman of the occasion, Professor Desalu, described the recognition of Onabamiro four decades after his passing as “remarkable.”
Professor Olajumoke Morenikeji, Deputy Vice Chancellor of Kola Daisi University and a parasitologist, delivered a lecture titled Professor Sanya Dojo Onabamiro as a Research Scientist. She highlighted his pioneering work on guinea worm disease, which laid the foundation for its eventual eradication in Nigeria. She also noted that the World Health Organisation (WHO) had declared Nigeria free of the disease, partly due to Onabamiro’s early research.
In a second lecture titled Professor Sanya Dojo Onabamiro as an Educationist, Professor Clement Kolawole, Vice Chancellor of Trinity University, lauded the academic legacy of the Fuwagboye of Ago-Iwoye, who made significant contributions to global knowledge.
Speaking on behalf of the family, Miss Enitan Onabamiro expressed gratitude to UI for remembering and honouring her father 40 years after his death.
“Many people would have been forgotten by now, but not our father,” she said. “We thank the university for this great honour and promise to uphold his legacy.”
Miss Onabanke Onabamiro, also speaking on behalf of the family, described her late father as a hardworking and brilliant individual who was devoted to excellence in all his endeavours.
“We are very proud of our father,” she said. “The virtues we learnt from him continue to shape our lives positively.”
A granddaughter of the late scholar Toyin Odumade, a lawyer, described Onabamiro as a caring, generous, and visionary man who valued quality education and left an enduring impact on his descendants.
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