Prof. Chike Obi: Nigeria's foremost Mathematics Professor is dead

[Tony Agbali]

Incalculable loss, ThisDay Newspaper [Nigerian]-03.14.2008

Friday, March 14, 2008

Foremost mathematician and Nigeria’s first PhD holder in Mathematics, Professor Chike Obi, died yesterday. Bukola Olatunji pays tribute to the icon who taught William Kumuyi and Edwin Madunagu at the University of Lagos.

Sometime in 1973, the Dean, School of Mathematics and Physical Sciences at the University of Lagos had organised a five-day seminar for staff and students to prove a theory in Differential Equations. It was to run from Monday to Friday. For two hours everyday, the lecturer made his presentation and on the fourth day, announced that he had finished stating the problem.

Everyone present was alarmed. If it took four out of five days to state the problem, how long would it take to solve it? But by the following day, the lecturer solved the problem.

That lecturer was the first Nigerian to earn a Ph.D in Mathematics, the renowned Emeritus Prof. Chike Obi, who died yesterday at 87.

One of his students, Dr. Edwin Madunagu, who attended that seminar told THISDAY yesterday that “the import of that anecdote is that, if you state a problem clearly and exhaustively, not only in Mathematics, but in all spheres of life, the solution will emerge.”

“Many of us (his students, including the leader of the Deeper Life Bible Church, William Kumuyi) remember what joy and pain it was to be in his class. He was a disciplinarian. As a Scientist, he believed in rigour. There were no assumptions. Everything must be explicitly stated,” he said. 

Born in Zaria on April 7, 1921, Obi died yesterday after an illness at a hospital on Enugu Road, Onitsha, Anambra State.

THISDAY learnt that the Anambra State government was planning to fly him abroad for further treatment but he was too weak to fly. 

He attended St Patrick’s Primary School, Zaria; Christ the King College, Onitsha; Yaba Higher College (now Yaba College of Technology), the University of London, as an external student, and the Pembroke College of the University of Cambridge, where he obtained his Ph.D in 1950.

Although he worked in all areas of pure and applied Mathematics, Obi’s area of concentration was Non Linear Differential Equation of the Second Order.

Obi was a man of many parts, a Mathematician, university lecturer, politician and author. Recalling his achievements yesterday, Madunagu said, “Every person of my own generation and older easily agree that he was a frontline Scientist and Mathematician. Within his own sphere, he was a radical politician. He was anti-establishment. Many did not know that he wrote a book, ‘Our Struggle’, published in the 50s, in which he outlined his political philosophy.”

He was the Leader and Secretary-General of the Defunct Dynamic Party, which, despite the influence of the Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe of the NCNC, simultaneously won seats in both the Federal Parliament and Eastern House of Assembly, representing Onitsha Urban Constituency. He had won the Federal Seat first in 1960.

When he later won the Eastern Seat the following year, the Speaker of the Federal House ruled that he would have to relinquish his seat for the latter. Obi rejected to the ruling and refused to leave the House. He had to be physically carried out of the House and went on the Eastern House, were he served until 1966.

Obi, along with the late first Professor of Mathematics in Nigeria, Adegoke Olubummo, and James Ezeilo, pioneered modern mathematics research in Nigeria. But many of his students became professors in the field ahead of him due to his foray into politics.

In 1998, and without the aid of any instrument, Obi solved the 361-year-old mathematical puzzle known as Fermat's Last Theorem, enunciated by the 17th century French Mathematician, Pierre de Fermat.

The father of four was a father to others too.  Madunagu recalled a personal level, that when he, then 28, was detained by the government for several months in 1975, it was to Obi, then his Head of Department, that he was handed over upon his release.

Obi had started his career as a Lecturer at the University College, Ibadan (now University of Ibadan) in 1959. He became an Associate Professor of Mathematics at the University of Lagos in 1970 and full Professor, the following year. He was Dean of the Faculty of Science in 1980 and Emeritus Professor of the University since 1985.

A Fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Science, Obi won the Ecklund Prize from the International Centre for Theoretical Physics for original work in Differential Equations, and pioneering works in Mathematics in Africa.

The late Chike Obi believed in the ideology of benevolent dictatorship. According to him, a leader should not oppress his people, but should be firm in giving direction. He did not believe in the 'one man, one vote', arguing that "people voted for what they did not know about." He found a hero in the Father of modern Turkey, Kamal Atartuk.

He was also a newspaper columnist in the 1980s and wrote on national issues under the title: “I Speak for the People”.

Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, said his passage was “not just a loss to the people of Anambra State and Nigeria, but also a painful personal loss to me because I have been very close to him in the last one year. We saw him as role model to the youths of Anambra as we try to rebuild the state.”

The Anambra governor had visited Obi last year and expressed surprise at the man’s state. He placed him on a maintenance allowance of N50,000 monthly and bought him a standby generator.

President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Dr. Dozie Ikedife, described the death of Obi as a “sad incident” and “a big loss to the country. He was an icon and a pride not just to Nigeria but also to Africa. It will be a big loss to all Nigerians. He was a leader in his own field and one who lived by example.”

Dr. Joe Nwogu, a member of Imeobi Ohanaeze, also described Obi’s death as a tragedy to all Nigerians. Nwogu who attended the same Pembroke University Cambridge with Obi said Ndigbo had lost an intellectual giant who was a pride to all.

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[Assensoh, Akwasi B.]

Professor Chike Obi’s “Mathematical miscalculation” comment!
Tony:
Thank you very much for the very useful posting!
It was sad to read about the death, at 87, of Professor Chike Obi, a foremost mathematical genius of Africa (not only of Nigeria). Also, many thanks to Bukola for that very refreshing tribute. However, permit me to present a lighter side to lighten the heavy burden of losing such a brilliant African mind!
Since I knew Professor Obi as a Journalist, but not as a mathematician, I DON'T pretend that he either taught me or that he was even an acquaintance. I got to know him by accident, indeed after Chief Obafemi Awolowo had launched one of his published books. Professor Obi was passing by to visit someone near the same venue for the book launch. As a non-Nigerian Journalist living and working in Nigeria at the time, I had the opportunity of coming to know several great minds soon after then Lt.-Colonel Yakubu Gowon’s counter-coup d’etat. That was also before the Nigerian civil war.
Some Journalists had converged (or clustered) around Chief Awolowo to congratulate him on his new book, which some of us described as a “great book.” Surprisingly, the Chief told us that his book could be greater if “the printers did not miss a comma” on a certain page (I think on page 49). This was many decades ago, but I still remember the hilarious occasion as if it happened yesterday.
Professor Obi also seemed to have heard part of what Chief Awolowo said about his book, because he was standing nearby, waiting for his friend, as he said. Mr. Ajibola, a Nigerian Journalist from LAGOS WEEKEND newspaper (a sister newspaper of DAILY TIMES of Kakawa Street, Lagos), recognized Dr. Chike Obi, the great mathematician. Mr. Ajibola, who knew him fairly well, mentioned to Dr. Obi what Chief Awolowo said, and asked if Dr. Obi cared to comment on that for his newspaper. Dr. Obi, diplomatically, said he was not there to be interviewed, but that Chief Awolowo’s anguish about the missing comma was in order. However, as the Professor further put it, what Chief Awolowo said about the missing comma, was like “what we mathematicians may call mathematical miscalculation.” Ms. Omene, a female Journalist, retorted something like: “Interesting! Professor Obi seems to live by and eats mathematical solutions every minute of the day. Mathematical miscalculation, really?”
After that, Professor Obi left the scene, but we (as Journalists) went to a Lagos restaurant to eat, drink or to continue our hectic discussions: this time, to find out in heated discussions if Professor Chike Obi that we had just seen could really be deemed (or described) as the best intellectual mind in Nigeria at the time. Some people mentioned Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe; Chief Awolowo, Dr. Biobaku, and someone even mentioned Upabi Asika, who was just then coming into public view, among others; someone with legal interests asked, “Why not Dr. Ohunbamu.” A socialist among us then mentioned Dr. Tunji Otegbeye of Ireti Group of Hospitals. In the end, we settled on Professor Chike Obi, as the most brilliant intellectual mind, at the time, in Nigeria, if not all of Africa. May he rest in perfect peace!
Some mild questions: By the way, is it not ironic that several great Nigerians were born in the former northern region? Also, didn’t Professor Chike Obi help solve a political mathematical problem, dealing with what a percentage of a certain fraction would mean in numbers Nigerian electoral polls?Someone should, please, remind us of that, as part of remembering this mathematical genius, who saw “mathematical miscalculations” in varied situations!
A.B. Assensoh, Bloomington, Indiana.

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From: USAAfric...@googlegroups.com [USAAfric...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Tony Agbali [atta...@yahoo.com]
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Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Prof. Chike Obi: Nigeria's foremost Mathematics Professor is dead

Incalculable loss, ThisDay Newspaper [Nigerian]-03.14.2008
Friday, March 14, 2008
Foremost mathematician and Nigeria's first PhD holder in Mathematics, Professor Chike Obi, died yesterday. Bukola Olatunji pays tribute to the icon who taught William Kumuyi and Edwin Madunagu at the University of Lagos.

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