Nigerian politics has been described as the most important obstacle  to national development.

This assertion was made yesterday by Prof Anya O Anya while delivering the 29th Convocation lecture of the University of Port Harcourt.

He lamented that the collection of half educated political jobbers with no commitment to any vision or values have driven the country into the  paradox of being ruled by cabals and other private interest in an otherwise democratic dispensation.

Prof Anya who is recorded as the first Nigerian experimental and basic scientist to win the Nigerian National Merit Award (NNMA) noted that while the political leaders might inveigh against corruption, the current system was being driven by greed, deceit and dishonest maneuvers by scammers of all varieties as 419ers, credit card scammers and even ex-convicts which he said the presidential powers had inflicted on the polity despite indicted malfeasance.

“A former DIG of Police who transformed into Senator, once cried out in obvious embarrassment on the floor of the Senate that many of his distinguished colleagues in the hallowed chambers of the Senate of the Federal Republic were those whom he had the unfortunate duty to investigate for indictable criminal offences”, he said.

Prof Anya remarked that the assumption that was popular in the 1970s that resource rich countries enjoyed a comparative advantage in their efforts for long term economic development has been upstaged by an emergence of a new idea that countries can enjoy some comparative advantage in their effort for economic development on the basis of their human capital development of expertise, skills and education in general.

In his topic, titled: the Idea and Uses of the University in the 21st Century, the academician stated that by the law, the National Universities Commission had the responsibility to regulate and oversee the  development of universities in the country but regretted that the rapid explosion in the number of universities in the last 20 years have created strains and stresses in the NUC’s ability and capacity to satisfactorily discharge its responsibilities.

Prof Anya, a one time chairman of NUC committee on the objectives, academic and administrative structure of the universities of Technology maintained that under provision of financial resources to the underdevelopment of needed infrastructure as well as lack of  trained manpower particularly of academic teachers, the story is one of criminal neglect and called for adequate funding of universities across the country.

Physical facilities for teaching and learning in public universities, he said were inadequate, dilapidated, overstretched and improvised, adding that there was much pressure on existing facilities  due to unplanned expansion of programmes.

Chris Oluoh