Kofo Abayomi
Encyclopedia
Kofoworola Adekunle "Kofo" Abayomi, Kt
(10 July 1896 - 1 January 1979) was a Nigerian ophthalmologist who was one of the founders of the nationalist Lagos Youth Movement in 1934 and who went on to have a distinguished public service career.
He was of Egbe
origin.
He studied pharmacy at the Yaba Higher College, then attended the Medical School, University of Edinburgh
, graduating in 1925.
He was retained as a demonstrator for a period before he returned to Nigeria to work under Dr. Oguntola Sapara
.
He returned to the United Kingdom
in 1930 to study tropical medicine and hygiene, and returned again in 1939 for a postgraduate course in ophthalmic surgery and medicine.
As an African doctor with British training, Abayomi had to join the British Colonial Medical Service to make a living, and had to cope with British doctors who felt that Africans were inferior.
The NYM was formed by members of the Lagos intelligentsia who were protesting the plan for Yaba College
, which they considered would provide inferior education to Africans.
The organization was originally called the Lagos Youth Movement but was renamed in 1936 to reflect its broader scope.
Abayomi became President of the NYM on the death of Dr. James Churchill Vaughan in 1937.
Abayomi was elected a member of the Legislative Council in 1938.
When he resigned from both positions so he could go abroad for further studies, he precipitated a crisis.
Rival candidates were Ernest Ikoli
, an Ijo, and Samuel Akinsanya
, an Ijebu
who was supported by Nnamdi Azikiwe
. When the executive chose Ikoli as their candidate, both Akinsanya and Azikiwe left the party, taking most of their followers with them.
.
The Egbe Omo Oduduwa
, a Yoruba
social welfare organization formed in London
in 1945, was inaugurated in Ile Ife in June 1948. Sir Adeyemo Alakija
was elected president. Abayomi was elected treasurer.
Abayomi was a member of the Governor's Executive council from 1949-1951.
In 1950 the Alaafin of Oyo, Adeyemi II, gave the Oloye Abayomi the chieftaincy title of One-Isokun of Oyo.
Two years later, in April 1952, Oba Adele II of Lagos gave him the title of Baba Isale.
Sir Kofo Abayomi was one of the founding members of the Action Group
when that party's Lagos branch was inaugurated on the 5th of May, 1951.
In the first half of 1954, there were several tax riots in the northern Oyo
towns.
In August of that year, a number of Yoruba
chieftain
s sent Sir Kofo Abayomi to see the Alaafin
of Oyo and try to make him drop support for the nationalist National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons
.
Sir Kofo represented the Nigerian Legislature on the Governing Council of the University College, Ibadan from its foundation in 1948 to 1961. He was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Board of Management of the University College Hospital, Ibadan when it was inaugurated in 1951.
In 1958, he was appointed Chairman of the Lagos Executive Development Board, which had authority to demolish unsanitary buildings and undertake town planning schemes.
Abayomi became the first Nigerian Chairman of the Board of the University College Hospital, Ibadan in 1958, a position he held until 1965.
In 1959, he was chairman of the Board of Management of the University College Teaching Hospital in Lagos.
He served on the board or as chairman of several companies for the rest of his life. Sir Kofo died peacefully at home on 1 January 1979 at the age of 82, leaving behind a widow, Lady Oyinkan Abayomi, who was herself a prominent figure in the history of Nigeria.
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
(10 July 1896 - 1 January 1979) was a Nigerian ophthalmologist who was one of the founders of the nationalist Lagos Youth Movement in 1934 and who went on to have a distinguished public service career.
Early years
Abayomi was born on the 10 July 1896 in Lagos.He was of Egbe
Egbe
Egbe Mekun which is popularly called ‘Egbe’ in brief is an historic town located in Yagba West Local government Area of Kogi State, Nigeria, West Africa.- History :This town is an ancient town bordering Kogi and Kwara States...
origin.
He studied pharmacy at the Yaba Higher College, then attended the Medical School, University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, graduating in 1925.
He was retained as a demonstrator for a period before he returned to Nigeria to work under Dr. Oguntola Sapara
Oguntola Sapara
Oguntola Odunbaku Sapara was a doctor, originally from Sierra Leone, who spent most of his career in Nigeria. He was best known for his campaign against secret societies that were spreading smallpox.-Birth and education:...
.
He returned to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
in 1930 to study tropical medicine and hygiene, and returned again in 1939 for a postgraduate course in ophthalmic surgery and medicine.
As an African doctor with British training, Abayomi had to join the British Colonial Medical Service to make a living, and had to cope with British doctors who felt that Africans were inferior.
Nigerian Youth Movement
Abayomi was a founding member of the Nigerian Youth Movement (NYM) in 1933.The NYM was formed by members of the Lagos intelligentsia who were protesting the plan for Yaba College
Yaba College
Yaba Higher College was founded in 1932 in Yaba, now a suburb of Lagos in Nigeria to provide tertiary education to Africans, mostly in vocational subjects and teaching. The college staff were transferred to start the University of Ibadan in 1948 and the college premises were used for the new Yaba...
, which they considered would provide inferior education to Africans.
The organization was originally called the Lagos Youth Movement but was renamed in 1936 to reflect its broader scope.
Abayomi became President of the NYM on the death of Dr. James Churchill Vaughan in 1937.
Abayomi was elected a member of the Legislative Council in 1938.
When he resigned from both positions so he could go abroad for further studies, he precipitated a crisis.
Rival candidates were Ernest Ikoli
Ernest Ikoli
Ernest Sissei Ikoli was a Nigerian politician, nationalist and pioneering journalist. He was the president of the Nigerian Youth Movement and in 1942, represented Lagos in the legislative council.-Early life and career:...
, an Ijo, and Samuel Akinsanya
Samuel Akinsanya
Samuel Akinsanya, also rendered incorrectly as Akisanya, was a Nigerian trade unionist and nationalist based in Lagos, Nigeria during the colonial era, one of the founders of the Nigerian Youth Movement.-Early years:...
, an Ijebu
Ijebu
Ijebu was a Yoruba kingdom in pre-colonial Nigeria. It formed around the fifteenth century. According to legend, its ruling dynasty was founded by Obanta of Ile-Ife...
who was supported by Nnamdi Azikiwe
Nnamdi Azikiwe
Benjamin Nnamdi Azikiwe , usually referred to as Nnamdi Azikiwe and popularly known as "Zik", was one of the leading figures of modern Nigerian nationalism who became the first President of Nigeria after Nigeria secured its independence from the United Kingdom on 1 October 1960; holding the...
. When the executive chose Ikoli as their candidate, both Akinsanya and Azikiwe left the party, taking most of their followers with them.
Later career
Abayomi returned to Nigeria in 1941 to continue his successful family practice. He later became the first private practitioner to be elected president of the Nigerian Medical AssociationNigerian Medical Association
The Nigerian Medical Association is the largest professional organization of physicians in Nigeria and in Africa. The NMA has more than 35,000 members from 36 state branches and the branch from the federal capital territory, including those registered in the diaspora...
.
The Egbe Omo Oduduwa
Egbe Omo Oduduwa
Egbé Ọmọ Odùduwà, was a Nigerian political organization established in 1945, when Chief Obafemi Awolowo along with Dr. Oni Akerele, Chief Akintola Williams, Professor Saburi Biobaku, Chief Abiodun Akinrele, Chief Ayo Rosiji and others, met in London....
, a Yoruba
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
social welfare organization formed in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1945, was inaugurated in Ile Ife in June 1948. Sir Adeyemo Alakija
Adeyemo Alakija
Adeyemo Alakija, KBE was a Nigerian lawyer, politician and businessman. He was a newspaper entrepreneur who co-founded the Daily Times of Nigeria. He was also a member of the governor's executive council, the legislative council of Nigeria and was president of the Nigerian Youth Movement.He was...
was elected president. Abayomi was elected treasurer.
Abayomi was a member of the Governor's Executive council from 1949-1951.
In 1950 the Alaafin of Oyo, Adeyemi II, gave the Oloye Abayomi the chieftaincy title of One-Isokun of Oyo.
Two years later, in April 1952, Oba Adele II of Lagos gave him the title of Baba Isale.
Sir Kofo Abayomi was one of the founding members of the Action Group
Action Group (Nigeria)
Action Group was a Nigerian political party established in Ibadan on March 21, 1951, by the Ègbe Ọmọ Odùduwà led by Chief Obafemi Awolowo. The party was founded to serve as the platform for realizing his primary objective of mobilising the Yorùbá into one political umbrella...
when that party's Lagos branch was inaugurated on the 5th of May, 1951.
In the first half of 1954, there were several tax riots in the northern Oyo
Oyo State
Ọyọ State is an inland state in south-western Nigeria, with its capital at Ibadan. It is bounded in the north by Kwara State, in the east by Osun State, in the south by Ogun State and in the west partly by Ogun State and partly by the Republic of Benin....
towns.
In August of that year, a number of Yoruba
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
chieftain
Chieftain
Chieftain may refer to:The leader or head of a group:* a tribal chief or a village head.* a member of the 'House of chiefs'.* a captain, to which 'chieftain' is etymologically related.* Clan chief, the head of a Scottish clan....
s sent Sir Kofo Abayomi to see the Alaafin
Alaafin
Alaafin or Man of the Palace in the Yoruba language was the title of the emperor of the medieval Oyo empire of northwestern Yorubaland. It was retained through the fall of that state as the official title of the ceremonial ruler of the contemporary Oyo clan....
of Oyo and try to make him drop support for the nationalist National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons
National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons
National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons , was a Nigerian political party from 1944 to 1966. The name included 'Cameroons' because Cameroon had become an administrative part of Nigeria in 1945. Cameroon had been a colonial territory of Germany...
.
Sir Kofo represented the Nigerian Legislature on the Governing Council of the University College, Ibadan from its foundation in 1948 to 1961. He was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Board of Management of the University College Hospital, Ibadan when it was inaugurated in 1951.
In 1958, he was appointed Chairman of the Lagos Executive Development Board, which had authority to demolish unsanitary buildings and undertake town planning schemes.
Abayomi became the first Nigerian Chairman of the Board of the University College Hospital, Ibadan in 1958, a position he held until 1965.
In 1959, he was chairman of the Board of Management of the University College Teaching Hospital in Lagos.
He served on the board or as chairman of several companies for the rest of his life. Sir Kofo died peacefully at home on 1 January 1979 at the age of 82, leaving behind a widow, Lady Oyinkan Abayomi, who was herself a prominent figure in the history of Nigeria.