Siddiq ( Ayinde Oki) was born into the family of the late Salawu Ajadi Ajikanje & Alhaja Fatima Saratu Atunwa of 18, Isale-Asa Street, Opposite Temitope Hospital, Opo maalu, Ilorin on Saturday October 20, 1951.

Early childhood was in Ilorin and later Sagamu. He then went on to Secondary School first in Wukari, then his much beloved St Michael’s College, Aliade and Titcombe College, Egbe.

He went on to do his Higher school Certificate in Kafanchan and graduated with an MBBS in 1976 from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria.

Destiny caught up with him during NYSC in Calabar where he met his beautiful wife Oluwakanyinsola Williams. In this case, however, the rest is not history. The rest is contemporary.

He was an Orthopaedic Surgeon of high repute and worked in ABU Teaching Hospital Zaria, Dobuto Specialist Hospital, Kaduna, NNPC Medical Centre, Abuja and National Hospital, Abuja from where he retired. At the National Hospital, he was the Head of Surgery until his retirement.

He went on to being a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon in Cedarcrest Hospitals, heading the residency training Program in Orthopaedics and where he also recorded the feat of leading the training of the first Orthopedic Surgeon in a private hospital in Nigeria.

He was a member of numerous professional associations ( Most notable, Nigerian Orthopaedic Association, Nigerian Medical Association), examiner and senate member of the National Postgraduate Medical College and served for several years as the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Games Village Residents Association and later the Chairman of the COVID response team.

He was also a staunch member of his local Muslim community, serving as Mosque treasurer among others.

He was an enthusiastic scrabble-player, walking encyclopaedia, excellent Hausa interpreter and a delight to converse with at all times. He remained a devoted muslim and a gentleman extraordinaire! He had a pleasant word for everyone, many times, greeting them in their own languages.

The foregoing, therefore, is an over-abridged précis of the biography of our loving Father, Uncle, Brother, Grandfather who was called “Daddy” by so many, a great friend to many both local and international as he touched their lives in various ways.

He is survived by his darling wife, Prof (Mrs) Oluwakanyinsola Salawu, the children; Dr (Mrs) Oludolapo Sherifah Katibi(University of Ilorin) Dr (Mrs) Bukola Ajiboye (UK) Dr AbdulAzeez Salawu (Canada) Hajia Titilayo, Hajia Tawakalitu, Prof Katibi Ibraheem Adeola, Dr Ajiboye, Prof Abdulwahab Ajape, and many grandchildren.

We are grateful to Allah for a life well-lived. We pray for forgiveness of his shortcomings and eternal repose of his soul in Al-Jannah Firdaus. Amin