Thoughts on Nigeria's Fatal Neglect

                    By Bayo Ogunmupe

    A lecturer in the Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Nigeria, Dr Jacob Medubi is the author of Nigeria's Fatal Neglect: Thoughts on Nigeria's backwards in science and a call to embrace research - The Only Hope. In the book, Medubi opines that Nigeria is scientifically challenged. Although Nigerian leaders ignore the cultural belief systems into which they were born; but they are caged by abysmal ignorance leading to the escalation of poverty and backwardness among its people.

    Nigeria's failure in science and technology is the reason why it is at the mercy of other races and is the victim economic backwardness. People of other races design and make airplanes, automobiles, the global system of mobile communication, the computer and robots, sadly, all we do is consume these products. Without a quick course redirection to the study of science and technology, Nigeria and indeed Africa will be so cut off from the jobs of the future that we will be unable to liberate ourselves from being the poverty capital of the world.

    Due to its large- 200 million strong population, its poor scientific enterprise  and adherence to primordial beliefs, Nigeria is standing in the way of Africa's progress and emancipation. Published in 2018 by Etchwise Consulting Limited, Lagos; Nigeria's Fatal Neglect is in paperback. It has 360 pages; 11 chapters, a preface, an introduction; 12 Frequently Asked Questions, six pages of appendices and nine pages of notes. In his preface to the book, the author, Dr Medubi explains the reason  why he wrote the book by quoting the 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy who said:

    "If the pursuit of learning is not defended by the educated citizen, it will not be defended at all. For there will always be those who scoff at intellectuals, who cry out against research, who seek to limit our educational system. Modern cynics and skeptics see no more reason for landing a man on the moon which we shall do than the cynics and skeptics of half a millennium ago saw for the discovery of this country. They see no harm in paying those to whom they entrust the minds of their children a smaller wage than is to those to whom they entrust the care of their plumbing."

    But the educated citizen knows how much is there to know. He know that "knowledge is power"- more so today than ever before. He knows that only an educated and informed people will be free people; that the ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all; and that if we can, as Jefferson put it "enlighten the people generally ...tyranny and the oppression of mind and body will vanish like evil spirits at the dawn of the day." And therefore. the educated citizen has a special obligation to encourage the pursuit of learning, to promote exploration of the unknown, to preserve the freedom of enquiry, to support the advancement of research and to assist every level of government the improvement of education for all Americans from grade school to graduate school."

    Thus, that Africa is running out of time to remedy its backward position in the world is the issue Medubi addressed in this book. He is therefore calling on Nigeria to embrace scientific research, otherwise there will be no hope of our breaking out of poverty for us now, nor the future. Subsequently, I am breaking the review into three sections. Section one covers chapters one to four. This means covering from: Measuring how far behind we are, the questions we're not asking to This side of the divide and The giant paradox. While the Nobel winning physicist, Albert Einstein correctly figured out that there isn't any ultimate frame of reference when considering motion in the observable universe; so, measuring a people's progress is a matter of relativity.

     However, if we looked hard enough, we can tell who is actually moving forward from those who are stagnant. It is known that Africa has fallen behind in science and technology causing widespread poverty, and economic stagnation. Unfortunately, we've refused to ask why. Courage and foresight are required to ask appropriate questions and proffer answers. In posing the correct questions, we must be guided by the fact that our ancestors didn't arrive on the planet later than the Europeans. They have outflanked us in various aspects of human life because we have mostly produced bad leaders who devoured our resources. The fault lines aren't cut along any biological differences but in the different approaches by which each race has chosen to live its life.

    Nigeria is a nation of paradoxes. The gap between the resources at our disposal in wealth and human material beats the imagination. The reality of our incompetence is mind boggling. Every national endeavor is a living witness to our tardiness. The Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Yaba, Lagos supposedly the single largest, most heavily funded biomedical research institute in Africa; which ought to be one of the top 10 in the world, has consistently continued to underperform as a regional scientific institute. We may produce a thousand Wole Soyinkas able to correct grammars of the English language, yet that will not change our status as a technologically challenged nation. Which is why we have to take science and technology seriously.

    On the other hand, when we're able to produce one Nobel laureate in Physics, Chemistry or Medicine- who has not spent a day in a foreign laboratory, that will attest to our arrival on the stage of global competitiveness that will give us the respect that will transform this generation of Nigerians. Indeed, Medubi is angered by every racial insult meted on us by the Europeans. Sadly our poor performance in political leadership, science and technology has not helped matters. Thus, proceeding on section two, where Medubi justified his position by showing proof of Nigeria's neglect of leadership in politics, science and technology. The author provides proof that our performance is far beneath our size and financial resources. The author contends that if Africa is to leap out of poverty, it must embrace scientific research. In his view, knowledge is  precious and more  powerful than anything else in the universe.

    Medubi believes that the reward of curiosity is the pleasure of knowing and that the benefit of knowledge is the capacity to harness nature's energy to power our world for the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness. Our neglect of science is so pervasive that we're unable to harness scientific knowledge to give us uninterrupted power supply. Reliable database is at the heart of the application of knowledge, strategic planning and a nation bereft of up-to date batabase has blind folded itself  and will grope ling in the pit of underdevelopment. The author considers Nigeria a great shame she could not produce stable power supply for the past 20 years.

    Finally, Thoughts on Nigeria's Fatal Neglect, concludes with The Power of Advocacy. Thus, the author points out that his mission is to wake Nigeria up to the onerous task of adopting science education without any further delay. He points out that science is our hope for the future.  The author, Dr Jacob Medubi holds a doctorate in Anatomy from the University of Ilorin. He is currently a senior lecturer at the College of Medicine, the University of Lagos. Nigeria.