OAU mourns Nigeria's first emeritus professor of law, Ijalaye

The Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife has mourned the first emeritus professor of Law and a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Professor David Ijalaye.

The Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Prof Eyitope Ogunbodede, described Ijalaye’s death as “monumental”.

A release by the Public Relations Officer of the University, Abiodun Olarewaju, quoted the Vice-Chancellor as saying Ijalaye would be missed not only to his immediate constituencies of academia and legal profession but to the entire country.

He lamented that “a library of encyclopedia of law and knowledge has gone”.

He also lauded the departed legal icon for his immeasurable sacrifice to the University, describing him as a “rock of Gibraltar” upon which the University’s Faculty of Law stands immovably.

Professor David Ijalaye had been the Dean of the Faculty of Law; the Chairman, Committee of Deans; Chairman, Ceremonials Committee of the University, and had held several other positions which invaluable contributions had helped shaped the Institution as an incubator of academic excellence and cultural values.

A native of Owo in Ondo State, Professor Ijalaye was born on the 8th of April, 1929. He attended Swedenburg Memorial School, Owo, between 1938 and 1945 before proceeding to Government School, Owo (1945 1946) and Imade College, Owo (1946 – 1952).

In 1960, he proceeded to Hull University, England where he was awarded an LLB degree in 1963, before coming back to the Nigerian Law School, Lagos in 1964.