Glorious Last Born At 70

Dr. Emmanuel Adedoyin Opanuga

Dr. Emmanuel Adedoyin Opanuga

By Sulaiman Osho

Providence has a way of fulfilling itself on every individual. Destiny has a way of manifesting on every homo-sapiens. Fate has a way of manifesting itself on all living and non-living things. Pre-measurement has a unique way of playing the script on every human being no matter the situation. Pre-destination has a way of expressing itself on us all whether we like it or not.

Perhaps, everything has been written on all the over 7 billion people in the world today which must come to pass. Perhaps, the ink is dry on us all as we execute the dictum of William Shakespare (1564 – 1616), the Great British poet, playwright, and dramatist, who observes in his classic poem in ‘As You Like It’ Act II Scene VII, ‘All the world’s a stage. And all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances. And one man in his time plays many parts. His acts being seven ages…’

Truly, Dr. Emmanuel Adedoyin Opanuga, the great American-based Surgeon has played many parts in this world in the last 70 years. The Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland had saved many lives through his orthodox medicine expertise in Nigeria, Europe, and America in the last 840 months.

Dr. Emmanuel Adedoyin Opanuga
Dr. Emmanuel Adedoyin Opanuga

The certified medical practitioner by the American Board of Surgery in 1981 has played many parts for 3,653 weeks on earth. He has contributed greatly to the health needs of Nigeria as the Medical Head of Ota health Zone in Ogun State, Nigeria in the 1980’s.

Also, the General Surgeon trained at the Homer G. Phillips Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri in United States has played many parts for 25,568 days. Dr. Doyin Opanuga has contributed immensely to the rural health sector in Nigeria as the Medical-Officer-In-Charge at Ile-Ife and Ijebu-Ode between 1972 and 1975 after obtaining Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.; BS) from the University of Ibadan in June 1972.

The Otunba of Ilara-Remo in Ogun State, Nigeria has played many parts in this world in 613,620 hours through communal services to the people.

As fate will have it, this Ikenne-Remo born medical practitioner has played many parts in history within a span of 36,817,200 minutes with the emergence of two American trained medical experts among his children.

Through the dint of hard work, drive, forthrightness, zeal, and commitment, Dr. Opanuga has reached the zenith of his career in medicine from zero level to accomplished world class Surgeon without attending a secondary school. Within a period of 2.209E+09 seconds, he has played many parts in the world.

With the 441,806,400 breaths, the last born of a family of ten, born to the unlettered parents of Mr. Joseph Opanuga Okusanya and Mrs. Eunice Ejimo Opanuga Okusanya in Agede Compound of Ikenne-Remo has actually gone through the seven ages of life but one as enumerated by William Shakespare in his poem.

No doubt, the attainment of septuagenarian age in Nigeria calls for celebration and thanksgiving to the Hidden and Immerment Lord. More so, the World Health Organization (WHO) has ranked Nigeria 175th in the globe among the comity of nations with the Life Expectancy put at 52 years for male and 54 years for female.

Indeed, the emergence of Dr. Doyin Opanuga as a Global Brand and World Class Surgeon in United States of America was by Divine Design. In a family where the father had put embargo on western education for sheer arrogance and ignorance, the anointed child cried for three days endlessly at infancy for the mother to take him to school. The mother was forced to take him to school at the age of 4, and started the Great journey to stardom at St. Saviour’s School, Ikenne-Remo in January 1949.

Despite gaining admission to Mayflower School, Ikenne and Remo Secondary School, Sagamu, the young Opanuga couldn’t attend due to poor finances. Yet, his father, a Goldsmith and cow seller who was buoyant enough to finance his education declined to sponsor any child to school insisting that they should join him in his trade which had made him rich without formal education.

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But since the dictate of God must be fulfilled on him, he managed to attend Mushin District Council Modern School in Lagos, and St. Andrew’s Teacher’s College, Oyo, and passed his Ordinary level General Certificate examination through private reading.

These paved way for the young and determined Doyin Opanuga to attend the Federal School of Science, Lagos for the GCE Advanced Level programme on government scholarship and passed in flying colours.

Thus, he got admitted to read Medicine at the prestigious premier University of Ibadan in 1967 without financial support. Yet, he trudged on with the assistance of friends and classmates after being sent out of the Halls of Residence due to the non-payment of school fees in the first year.

Dr. Opanuga
Dr. Opanuga

The turning-point in the achievement of his education career was the sponsorship he got from Chief Kehinde Sofola, SAN also from Ikenne, who readily assisted to pay his fees from 200 Level in Medical School.

Almost 50 years after, Dr. Doyin Opanuga shed tears as he relates the story to me in Atlanta, Georgia, especially because Chief Sofola was in opposite political party with his father who was Action Group member led by Chief Obafemi Awolowo (the Ikenne Patriarch), and the former a member of the National Council of Nigeria and Cameroons (NCNC) led by Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe.

But as the sage, Tai Solarin notes, we should take scholarship from any source to pursue our dreams in education. And as God has a way to lead the indigent students out of the woods, Dr. Opanuga eventually got Federal Government scholarship in his third year to the fifth year.

In fact, the university had to refund the payment for his third year to Chief Sofola, SAN which had been paid in earnest.

Another great lesson in the anal of Dr. Opanuga in the pursuit of his medical education was the support from the British Manager of the Ibadan University Bookshop, Mr. D.C. Kemp who was paying for the medical books needed by him.

As an impoverished student, he couldn’t afford the high cost of medical books. So, he resorted to visiting the university bookshop regularly to read the books without purchase. But the Manager noticed this act of Dr, Opanuga and decided to pay for his medical books for the period of his medical education.

One unique thing about Dr. Opanuga is that, he is the only university graduate of the family of ten, and rose to the pinnacle of medical profession in the world. The Glorious Last Born of the family has won laurels in the medical profession locally, nationally, and internationally.

Indeed, September 2, 1944 was a Day of Glory for Nigeria with the birth of Dr. Emmanuel Adedoyin Opanuga who has been a harbinger of glad tidings for the country globally. He is married with children.

Happy 70th Birthday to the Gem of Medical profession!

•Sulaiman A. Osho is a Scholar and Researcher of Communication, Marketing and Media at the Aberdeen Business School, Robert Gordon University, Scotland, United Kingdom

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