Prof. Peter Ogedebe, the Dean, Faculty of Computing and Applied Science, Baze University, says corruption is responsible for research conducted without results in the country.
Ogedebe made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday.
He noted that though funding also impedes on successful research by many organisations and institutions.
“In most cases where people are provided with fund, such money is diverted for personal use.
“Not much is spent on the research itself! Most people divert the money into doing private things; some used it to marry wives, some used it to buy cars, some use it to buy houses.
“For instance, if you are given a N100, 000 to do a research, how much of this N100, 000 are you spending on the research?” he asked.
The dean, who stressed that the issue of corruption must be addressed for research to get appropriate result, said the aim of doing research was to solve societal problems.
“Any research that is not aimed at solving problems in the society cannot be said to be a research.
“So unless this issue of corruption is eradicated at every level, we will not get it right.
“This corruption we are talking about is not when you are a minister or governor, even at your own level as lecturers, medical doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc, you can be corrupt,” he said.
Ogedebe, who also blamed the problems on poor power supply in the country, added that many people also do research just to earn promotion.
“If government is able to solve the problem of electricity, things will begin to go well. Again, many people don’t know why they are doing research.
“Some just do research to get promotion, to earn a living and what have you. They don’t know that doing research is to solve problems of the society in the area of your specialisation.
“For instance, if you are an agriculturist, you should solve agric-related problems, if you are an engineer, you should solve the problem related to your field, if you are a computer scientist, you should solve the problems of automation, etc.
“But you discover that many researchers do not have focus. Some believe that as a lecturer in a university, the ultimate goal of research is to become a professor. So, majority do research just to fulfil all righteousness.”
The don said for research to be meaningful, government should also be ready to equip the institutions of higher learning toward addressing the problems of the society.
“Because if the equipment is not there, it will be difficult to do meaningful research,” he said.
He added that researchers must also be given a yardstick or measurable objective to be met for an acceptable research.
“There should be a criteria attached to that research to achieve the aim.
“Presently, Nigeria is faced with so many problems ranging from insurgency, kidnapping, corruption to low managerial ability to produce goods and services, etc.
“So people should actually do research to solve these problems. In agriculture, what can we do to enhance food security? In military, what can we do to combat the myriad of security crises,” he stated. (NAN)