By Gbenga Sodeinde in Ado Ekiti
The Vice-Chancellor of Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti (EKSU), Professor Eddy Olanipekun, has challenged professors and intellectuals both within and outside the country to come together and fix the country’s economy.
Olanipekun threw the challenge while giving his remark at the 80th inaugural lecture of the institution, delivered by a Professor of Medical Biochemistry at EKSU, Prof. Olayinka Anthony Awoyinka, titled ‘Exploring Underutilized Local Fibre: Panacea for Economical and Healthy Foods’, held at the university auditorium.
The vice-chancellor described as disheartening that despite the high numbers of Nigerian professors and intellectuals within and outside the country, the country was still relying on expatriates to fix the country’s economy and refineries.
He said it was high time Nigerian intellectuals both the ones residing in Nigeria and the ones in diaspora did come together and fix not only the refineries but also the challenges confronting the country’s economy.
Olanipekun described as worrisome the fact that Nigerian professors and intellectuals excel in their various establishments across the globe and left their own country to wallow in economic woes while doing nothing about it.
“It is disheartening to note that in spite of the high level of highly talented professors, intellectuals within country and across the globe, we are still relying on expatriates to come and assist us in fixing the country’s economy and refineries.
“I can boastfully say that Nigeria is blessed with highly talented son and daughter intellectuals, professors and what have you, and they are all doing well at their various stations and establishments, but it will amaze you that despite this, we are unable to fix our own economy.
“It is high time we did intellectual interaction by actually coming together as intellectuals to proffer physical solution to the problems of the country.
“We cannot continue like this, our professors and intellectuals should come together and prove their mettle by solving the country’s hydra-headed problems,” Olanipekun added.
Meanwhile, Prof. Awoyinka, the inaugural lecturer, in his lecture where he proffered solutions to high BP, obesity, other metabolic disorders, suggested medical treatments to combat these.
The inaugural lecturer revealed that well controlled diets with the use of probiotics and probiotics from neglected underutilized local plants can serve as a major non-pharmacologic for the treatment of non-communicable metabolic disorder such as obesity, diabetes and hypertension.
Prof. Awoyinka disclosed that, he made the discovery while examining the characteristic features of over one hundred Nigerian maize cultivars obtained from International Institute of tropical agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan.
He added that the empirical data established have practicals in food and allied industries in which any of the maize cultivars could be preferentially exploited to useful products for human consumption.
“Positive results obtained from my studies with other researchers prove that well controlled diets with use of probiotics and probiotics from neglected underutilized local plants can serve as a major non-pharmacologic for the treatment of non-communicable metabolic disorder such as obesity, diabetes and hypertension.” He added
He also charged the Federal government of Nigeria and other African countries to recognize underutilized plant food in disease control strategies, adding that it’s what developed countries like China and India have done to commercialize the bioactive compounds derived from their medical food plants such as nautraceuticals.
“Nigeria and other African countries need to do more to properly identify, recognize and position underutilized plant food in our disease control strategies.
“This is what countries like China and India have done to commercialize the bioactive compounds derived from their medical food plants such as nautraceuticals.”
While rolling out strategies on how to control disease management, he charged Researchers to Conduct ethno botanical surveys to document underutilized local fibre because a lot of information can be gathered orally from the Locals.
“Collaborate with higher Institution to explore the underutilized plants with adequate funding to carry out the research.
“Strengthen and give priority to elucidation of the mechanism of action for biologically active extracts from the fibres in clinical investigations.”
Credit: Gbenga Sodeinde@THISDAY