By Eseoghene Emuke
One of Nigeria’s renowned professors of pharmacy, Professor David Tinakpoevwan Okpako, is dead.
Okpako, a retired Professor of Pharmacy at the University of Ibadan (UI), died on Monday September 7, 2020.
He was aged 84.
He hails from Ohwahwa in Ughievwen Kingdom in the Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State.
Okpako, an alumnus of Urhobo College, Effurun, was educated at the Universities of Bradford and London.
He was the first Urhobo to emerged Professor of Pharmacy.
The respected scholar obtained his PhD in Pharmacology in 1967 and became a Professor in 1977, and was one of the oldest professors in Nigeria.
The deceased founded the Faculty of Pharmacy at UI in 1983 and became its Dean from 1987 to 1991.
ALSO READ: Men Are Not Obligated To Financially Maintain Their Girlfriends – Reno Omokri
Upon retirement, Prof. Okpako was a visiting professor to many Ivy League universities in Nigeria and abroad.
The Urhobo-born professor was the founding Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy at Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka.
He authored several highly rated books.
Until his death, Prof. Okpako was a prominent leader of the renowned Urhobo Historical Society (UHS) where he made several contributions to Urhobo history and culture through his cutting edge essays and books including Science Interrogating Belief and Kpeha’s Songs.
He was a folklorist who documented Urhobo folkways, traditional medicine and healing practices and songs.
