CityPulse Nigeria: Meet Most Influential Pharmacist In Nigeria (PHOTO)

His speech, gait, poise and approach to issues reek of royalty. To a first timer, his mien cuts the image of a retired ambassador. On the contrary, Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi, OFR, FPSN, mni is more than that. He is a man of immeasurable quality.

A former federal commissioner (now known as minister) of health and human resources under the short-lived Ernest Shonekan regime, the 75-year-old is an accomplished pharmacist and legal practitioner.

There is hardly any event he chairs or attends in Nigeria today that he doesn’t get a standing ovation. His oratory power has been metaphorically compared only to the great Greek Philosopher – CICERO. In a single oral delivery, he has the tendency to spice up his speech with a rich blend of Latin, French, Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba dialects.

Thus it came as no surprise when the number one citizen of the country, President Muhammed Buhari, paid a personal glowing tribute to the chairman of MTN Foundation through pages of national dailies, broadcast and digital media specifically on his 75^th birthday.

...with members of Nigeria Academy of Pharmacy (NAPharm) at a recent event

Born in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, on August 2, 1940, he attended St. George’s Catholic Primary School, Ado Ekiti, from 1946 to 1952. From there, he got admission into St Thomas Aquinas College, also in Akure (1953 – 1957) for his secondary education. In furtherance of his education, he went to the Nigerian College of Arts, Science and Technology, Ibadan (1959 – 1961).

His foray into pharmacy practice started in 1962. The pharmacist was among the pioneering set of students that gained admission into the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife), from 1962 to 1965.

Fair and brainy, he was described as the most handsome pharmacy student as well as the toast of the ladies on campus. However rather than live out the image of a casanova that he was labelled, Adelusi-Adeluyi concentrated more on activism and other extra-curricular activities.

According to Pharmacist Eugene Chibuzor Okonkwo, a course mate, Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi was the most prominent personality at Ife in my time.

“I just could not fathom how he was able to cope with the tedium of being a pharmacy student and at the same time acting as secretary of National Union of Nigerians Students (NUNS), president of ANUNSA, PAX ROMANA and Pharmaceutical Association of Nigerian Students (PANS),

“While in the university, he was already showing signs of going into politics. Aside his unionism activities, he was almost becoming a regular newscaster at Western Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation (WNBC) at that time too. We (students) knew as at that time that he would turn out great in future,” he enthused.

...with Julia, his wife and pharmacists from industrial, academic and community practice

He has been described as an outstanding student leader at the local, national and international levels. He served as vice president, for International Affairs of the National Union of Nigerian Students in 1964.

At the international level, he was elected by student organisations worldwide, at their Annual Conference at Christ Church, New Zealand, as secretary-general of the world student body, the international student conference (ISC) based in Leiden, Holland in 1965.

In this capacity, he built student union organisations in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas. In the process, he visited over 140 countries and became multilingual.

The pharmacist’s exploits in the Pharmacy field didn’t go unnoticed. His unusual passion for the profession saw him come up with lots of innovative ideas in a bid to meet up with their counterparts in the western world.

He was credited with the composition and introduction of Pharmacy Anthem in Nigeria. He was later appointed as a health minister during the interim government of Dr Ernest Shonekan, which was subsequently toppled by a military regime headed by Late Gen. Sanni Abacha.

Since leaving political office, the amiable pharmacist invested his time developing his personal businesses and interests. One of such businesses which he heads as the executive chairman is Juli Plc., the first indigenous promoted company to be quoted on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

Squatting in the heart of Ikeja (close to Computer Village), Juli Pharmacy & Supermart has become a brand synonymous with quality and class. Occupying an expansive one-storey structure, the chairman (Adelusi-Adeluyi) office is the entire top floor.

The first time this writer visited the office of the soft-spoken pharmacy icon, it was a beauty to behold. He was seated right behind a massive desk. On the left were shelves of exotic books indicating a mini library - from Law, encyclopaedia, Pharmacopoeia, pharmacy-related to classical literature. The sprawling oriental rugs also looked like something imported from the fabled Arabian cartoon, Aladdin. Splendid!!!

...sitting comfortably with his wife, Julia at an event held by Prof Pat Utomi to fete him

Married to Julia, his childhood heartthrob, Adelusi-Adeluyi is also the president of the Indigenous Quoted Group (indigenous companies quoted on the Stock Exchange).

A multi-linguist, the ex-minister was a product of Language Institute, Noordvijk, Holland in 1967.

Presently, he speaks English, French, Dutch, Portuguese and Spanish fluently.

The pharmacist, who has an obsession with anything WHITE, finished his law programme at the University of Lagos (1984 – 1986). At the Nigerian Law School in 1987, he won the Best Overall Student prize.

The eminent pharmacist also participated in a programme at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) Kuru in 1990. He is a past national president of the Alumni Association of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru.

A revered gentleman, he is currently the group of chairman of Oodua Investment Conglomerate, an organisation coordinating the economic and cultural legacies of the south-western states of Nigeria.

Prince Adelusi-Adeluyi is also a former national president of the Nigeria-American Chamber of Commerce as well as the national president of the National Council for Population and Environmental Activities (NCPEA).

He became a Rotarian (Rotary Club of Ikeja) in 1969 and was elected club president in 1977. In 1980, he was elected district Governor for District 210 (covering Anglophone & Francophone West Africa) at the District conference in Kano, Nigeria. He became the first district governor of Rotary District 910 (later 9110) for 1982/83. He formed 33 new clubs within his year. He was succeeded as governor by PDG Bob Ogbuagu.

...receiving a Merit Award from former head of States, Gen Yakubu Gowon

The Prince has to his credit scores of publications among which are Drug Control, Import and Storage (Continued Education, Ife, 1976); You are welcome to my profession Pharmacy (television broadcast 1979); Public Relations in Pharmacy (PSN 1979); Medicines practical problems involved in their delivery to the patients in developing countries (International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) Madrid, Spain; Pharmacy in the West Africa Region: Problems and Prospects (W.A.P.F 1986); and The Pharmacist and Private Sector in Essential Drugs Programme (PSN, Benin, 1986).

Among his numerous awards are Member of the Federal Republic, MFR, 1986 and Officer of the Federal Republic, OFR, 2002. He is a Fellow of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (FPSN), a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Management (FNIM); a Fellow of the Institute of Directors, London (FIOD) and a Fellow of the West African Pharmaceutical Postgraduate College (FWAPPC). He also bagged the Centenary Award of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce, among many others.