Let’s Be Honest – Who Can Fix That Tokunbo Faster?
I was asked to make a post on this so this is it. Should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic? That’s the hot topic today. Imagine your car breaks down around Ojuelegba on a hot Monday afternoon. You’re sweating, your boss is calling, and you have two options: call Professor Olumide from UNILAG or stroll over to Baba Tunde the roadside mechanic under the mango tree. Now, who do you think will get your car started faster? Exactly.
It’s the age-old banter: should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic? Well, let’s break it down with a bit of sense and street smarts.
Different Shoes, Different Roads
First off, we need to understand that these two are running completely different races.
A Mechanical Engineering Professor in Nigeria is trained to understand why things work. They’re masters of theory – talking fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, and stress-strain diagrams. Their workspace is a lecture hall or maybe a lab in UNN or a workshop here at FUTA. Now, Baba Tunde, our local roadside mechanic, doesn’t know the first thing about Laplace Transforms, but he knows that if your fuel pump is coughing, a small hit with a spanner might bring it back to life – at least until you get to Ilorin.
So should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic? Not really. Their training paths don’t even cross.
Book Sense vs. Street Sense
Let’s not confuse ‘intelligence’ with ‘hands-on hustle.’ Professors are paid to research, teach, and maybe supervise final year projects that have nothing to do with cars. In fact, the mechanical engineering curriculum in Nigeria (just check UNN’s) covers broad concepts, with only general practicals. It’s not built to produce your next Keke Napep repairman.
Meanwhile, a roadside mechanic wakes up every morning to solve actual problems. Their classroom is the streets of Lagos, their exam? Fix that engine or lose your customer. Through apprenticeships, these mechanics learn by doing. No PowerPoint, just pure grease and experience.
So again, should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic? Bros, be calming down. That’s like asking a food science lecturer to run a buka kitchen.
What About The Students?
Ah yes, let’s not leave out the aspiring gurus — the mechanical engineering students. Many of them are still navigating the land of calculus and differential equations. You’ll often hear jokes like “na only God know wetin we dey calculate.”
Truth is, unless a student has taken the initiative to intern or learn from a roadside mechanic during long breaks, their practical car repair skills might be… well, theoretical at best. You see them in class saying “we calculated the stress on the shaft,” but hand them a spanner and they’ll be holding it like a fork.
In fact, some mechanical engineering students in Nigeria do industrial training (IT) under roadside mechanics because they know that’s where the real-life skills are. So should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic? If even the students are running to the roadside to get experience, how can the prof suddenly turn into Fast & Furious?
Nigeria’s Auto Reality
Let’s be honest. In Nigeria, even engineering students sometimes go to roadside mechanics to learn “the real thing.” That should tell you something.
We have a system where the theory is heavy but the practical side often gets sidelined due to poor infrastructure. Professors might get to oversee labs, but those labs are usually not stocked with a 2003 Camry with a gearbox wahala. That’s why, despite their PhDs, many professors call mechanics when their cars misbehave.
So again, should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic? Only if you think your wedding tailor should know how to dye fabric from scratch too.
Let’s Be Fair Though
There are exceptions. Some professors have worked in the industry or have personal interest in fixing cars. Maybe Uncle Femi in FUTA who still likes to tinker with his Beetle. But should we expect all professors to have that? Nope.
A mechanical engineering professor’s job is to train minds, not tighten bolts. Their strength is in helping us understand why that crankshaft fails, not in replacing it under the rain in Onitsha.
So if we’re being fair, the answer to should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic? is still a solid, respectful no.
Final Verdict: Stay In Your Lane
Comparing a Mechanical Engineering Professor to a roadside mechanic is like comparing a pharmacist to a herbalist. Both are valuable, both needed, but their tools and training are worlds apart.
Let professors teach, publish, and design the next generation of engines in theory. Let mechanics get down and dirty, fixing our cars with unmatched speed and intuition. We need both.
So next time someone throws the question, should a Mechanical Engineering Professor be able to match a roadside mechanic?, smile, sip your zobo, and say: “They don’t even play in the same league, my guy.”
And that’s the tea – or should we say, engine oil.
