Science and technology crush Nigeria. It denies us any reason for life other than survival. Nigeria is a developing country, and the contribution of science and technology should be equivalent to the rate of our development. It is becoming increasingly difficult for us to ignore every idea of Science and Technology swung at our face, we should moderate the influx of science and technology into our system. Just the way the developed world introduced religion, and like religious belief, Science and technology has been utilized as an ideological weapon with the worst intentions to perpetually keep us as a “developing nation”! While Science and Technology have contributed in no small measure towards developing (development), it will be unwise not to indicate and assess the destruction Science and Technology has contributed to the social, economic and political disasters in Nigeria. We need to follow “due-process”; If the foundation is faulty what can the righteous do? You don’t need a degree in engineering to know that a structure with a good foundation is bound to fail, it doesn’t matter the level and advance Science and Technology you use to beautify the façade. Jesus typicalised Nigeria when he contrasted the man who built his house on the sand with the man who built his house upon the rock. Nigeria is like a house built on sand.

Science and Technology is like a flow diagram of human life cycle, comprising the embryonic stage, baby, child, adolescent, adult, and old age. In Nigeria, paradoxically, it’s while we’re baby that we are cajoled into believing we’re adult, and we are feed with adult food, instead of allowing our natural course of growth. For example, efficient transportation is a multi-modal systems, meaning all the modes of transportation (motorable road, railways, sea routes, and air routes) must work, thereby supplement one another. There must be a minimal balance within the modes. Attempts to focus on one are will surely disrupt the balance. This lack of vision and knowledge, and as a result of selfish opportunities the developed world throw as us, we have rather taken liberty for licence in subjecting one particular mode of transport into death-traps. Invariably, millions of lives have been lost and thousand maimed as a result of our blindness. Is there a 1km length of intercity railway system in Nigeria? The air routes are for the rich only? The water route is non-existent and neglected? What explanation is there for the over emphasises on roads? Even, the roads are constructed without due cycle of: plan-design-construct-maintain-rehabilitate, rather we just construct(we don’t plan or maintain, but like to rehabilitate) from point “A” to point “B”; and someone(politicians and big-man) will even come and insist that a road route must transverse his village.

Furthermore, because we jump the natural Science-Cycle, injustice have been done by Science and Technology by ruining our rural area. For instance, as result of enticing facilities in the cities, thus, invariably multiplying the population, overcrowding, unemployment coupled with various problem emanate. In the developed countries, it’s the other way round; people are leaving the cities for the villages (country side). In view of the crazy exploitation Science and Technology brought to us, vast areas of land have been rendered useless for agricultural purposes. Unemployment also rises as a result of human labour being replaced by Science and Technology. Science and Technology have also altered our environment; a typical example is the Niger delta where thousands of species have been affected as result of imported Science and Technology to milk us dry, and what development have they archived in the Niger Delta? Death? Furthermore, Science and Technology, by the introduction of computers and the internet in general have caused deaths, infringement and destruction of personal freedoms. The introduction into Nigeria has earned us “The Most Corrupt Nation” with focus on privacy issues, identity theft, global traffic of illegal and harmful goods and information. Nobody wants to do business with Nigerians. I must be stupid to do business with you if you’re tagged the most “corrupt person”, while there are hundreds of other people.

Politically, the role Science and Technology towards our immaturity cannot be left unmentioned. Science and Technology have helped our capability in rigging and adjustment of electioneering results. In another view, sophisticated weapons are now being used in replacement for electioneering campaigns. Because Nigeria is tied to the apron string of developed countries, and subject to their whims and caprices, they Science and Technology to abracadabra  make believe to us despite we’re still child-Science-Cycle. Rocket propelled Grenade Launchers (RPG) and the ubiquitous AK 47 assaults rifles are in private hands in Nigeria, because of this make believe. Since the early 1990s it is estimated that there are well over 50,000 pieces of assorted light arms in circulation in Rivers State alone. In the entire Niger Delta it is estimated that there is close to about 250,000 pieces of light arms ranging from the AK 47 Kalashnokov Assault rifles, Heckler & Koch G-3 rifles, Belgian made Fabrique Nationale FN FAL rifles, Austrian Steyr stag.58, British L1A1 SLR, Brazilian IMBEL LAR, and Canadian C2 SAW. What are these weapons doing in Nigeria? How many wars have even the federal military fought?

To free ourselves from this bondage of Science and Technology, priority should be given to education, and less importance given to blind imitation and adaptation of every Science and Technology dangled at us. “Rome was not built in a day”, nonetheless, importation of everything “importable” should be curtailed if not stopped. This should encourage us to develop “within” and from “inside” us; and also to encourage indigenous firm to undergo researches and increase the qualities of their product. How many Nigeria’s product is exportable apart from oil? Finally, where tribal sentiments, nepotism, corruptions and other vices reign supreme, little or no progress will be achieved, even supposing we want to adopt every “Dick and Harry” of Science and Technology. I will like to draw my conclusion that the most needed strategy for any national development is the development of the Human Resources to develop Science and Technology and not Science and Technology developing the Human Resources. This is the secret hidden from the “developing” by the “developed.” The least sensible approach is to better educate ourselves about blind adaptation of about Science and Technology, so that Nigeria will be better able to manage and control Science and Technology as it operates and how it will affect us.

Rowland Adewumi

http://www.rowland-adewumi.com

Robot  # 1 | 14.03.2009 09:47

Science and technology crush Nigeria. It denies us any reason for life other than survival. Nigeria is a developing country, and the contribution of science and technology should be equivalent to the rate of our development. It is becoming increasingly difficult for us to ignore every idea of Science and Technology swung at our face, we should moderate the influx of science and technology into our system. Just the way the developed world introduced religion, and like religious belief, Science and technology has been utilized as an ideological weapon with the worst intentions to perpetually keep us as a “developing nation”! ...Read the full article.

aguabata  # 2 | 14.03.2009 12:18

your logic is sound but narrow. I would say that the failures you pointed out are failures of social development not technology.We have professors that tie juju (tortoise) around their waist, or hang charms in their offices behind nonlinear differential equation text books. Their are africans working at all levels of modern technology satisfactorily, however Africa's social development is not in sync with the modern technology available to us. It is our leaders that has the duty to narrow the gap. people make the mistake of giving India as an exmaple of a country that embraced modern technology and are reaping the benefits without appreciating that India had made considerable progress in their indigenous science and social development before the colonaialists arrived. The west has so much interfered with our natural cycle of development but we should stop blaming the west and become adults so as to benefit the positives of the intrusion and also manage it's negatives.