Of Michael Faraday, Obafemi Awolowo and Michael Faborode

By Augustine Togonu-Bickersteth

 Michael Faraday and  Michael Faborode were born on September 22  1791  and  1956  respectively .Faraday, a British chemist ,physicist and forerunner of the electrical engineering profession  and Faborode, a Nigerian Professor of agricultural engineering.
Faraday rejected the presidency of the Royal Institution  the Nigerian equivalent which is the Nigerian Academy of Science whereas Faborode  a farm machinery  and processing  expert   and a  fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering served as the President of the West African Association of Agricultural Engineers and is the incumbent secretary  - general  of the Commitee of Vice Chancellors.
 Its been said that if Michael Faraday had lived in the 20th Century, he would have won six Nobel Prizes for 'revolutionary discoveries in the area of physics and chemistry' so opined Sir John Thomas, former director of the Royal  Institution of Britain
Faborode has won   three prizes so far.  These include: joint  1st  prize, NOTAP National Innovation Award 2002; Joint  4th Prize Winner  RMDC processing plant design 2005 and 1st Prize Winner RMDC Plant Design 2008.
 On September 22 1978,the 22  Birthday  Anniversary of Faborode, the Unity Party of Nigeria was founded by Obafemi Awolowo and coincidentally, Faborode was appointed  as the  9th vice- chancellor of the Obafemi Awolowo University(OAU). Ile, Ife Osun State.
  On September 9,  1980, coincidentally, the 49th birthday of  the late  Profesor  Ojetunji Aboyade a noted economist   and university of Ife(Now OAU)  vice- chancellor, in a  foreword to a book, 320 worked examples in mechanics by   Professor Ayodele Awojobi,  Obafemi Awolowo wrote, 'One of the badges of Poverty is the inability of men to invent and maintain machines'.The Economist's Pocket Book of Figures of year 2019, reveals that Nigeria spent  10 Billion Dollars on importing machinery  and transport equipment in 2018. The Business Agro section of The Guardian August 6, 2018  had a report by  Femi Ibirogba captioned, Agric equipment fabricators seek end to job, wealth exportation. The report states Nigeria is import dependent on agricultural equipment and technologies despite colleges of agriculture and universities.