Since last year, 16-year-old Sunday Nnebedum has been adding colour and glamour to the annual new yam festival celebration of his people in Ezihe Igboukwu, Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State. Last year, the little lad showcased a prototype house at the festival and this year he built a prototype car, which has now informed his decision to go into car manufacturing in future.
And seriously, Nnebedum is leaving no stone unturned in his bid to achieve this nuturing as he had exhibited the talent of creativity and awaits the brushing up of the talent with education and training.
The young Nnebedum who will enter JSS3 when the schools resume later this month is a student of Christ the King Secondary School, Igboukwu.
Indeed, his prototype automobile was a cynosure of all eyes at the 2009 National Iwa Ji Celebration held at National Yam House, Igboukwu on Saturday, August 29, 2009, as he drove it round the arena. The pseudo vehicle which he told Daily Sun is a Mercedes Benz is powered manually with bicycle-like chains though it has a steering, brake pedal and electrical components as in a real vehicle.
The young boy, who said he produced a beautiful prototype house at last year’s yam festival, narrated how the idea of building the automobile came to him and how he actualized it.
Building of the motor: According to him, they were taught in school the use of gear and chains and after the lesson, he had a sleepless night thinking of what to make out of that lecture. “When I came back from school after we were taught of the use of chain and gear, I took a good look at the bicycle in our house, and was imagining how the Oyibo (white) people made it.
“After a long look and study of the bicycle, especially how the chain propels it to move, I decided that I will build a motor (automobile) that will be propelled by chains or if you like call it a ‘bicycle motor’”. Having taken the decision, Sunday said he immediately started sketching what was going on in his head on a paper and after the drawing, he did a skeleton-sort of the object like the way baskets are made. “Then, I showed it to my parents and told them what I wanted to do.
They encouraged me and gave me some woods and tapauline and I moved into action to construct the motor. After the wood work, I took it to the welder who built the chain area for me after I had told him what I wanted and how he should do it. “After that was constructed, that includes the steering, dashboard and doors; I went back to the drawing board and drew the electrical part of it. That is how the wire will run, the positioning of the lights (headlamps, trafficators, brake lights, their switches on the dashboard and even the radio), the music you are listening to is from the motor.
“So, after wiring and placing the lights, I used aluminum paint to paint it and later I sprayed it and that is what you are seeing now; I hope it’s fine?”
Parents’ contributions: Sunday noted that his parents, Mr and Mrs Chukwuma Nnebedum were helpful in his production. “My parents were very pleased with me and they encouraged me to continue. They gave me the whole money I used in building this, that is over N19, 000.”
Previous work and unfulfilled promise: Last year’s yam festival, if you were here, I am the boy who built house (prototype). That last year, they promised to give me scholarship, but up till now, nobody gave me anything.
This motor, now I took it to the Igwe’s palace the day he held his new yam festival and he promised to give me N50, 000 and said that I should bring it today, August 29, 2009 for the world to see and for him to fulfill the promise, so I am here and waiting.
Ambition: The 16-year-old boy told Daily Sun that his ambition is to acquire good education and to be trained to be able to manufacture automobile.
“I want the government and well meaning people to come to my aid, so that I can get quality education and be well trained as an engineer to bring my vision of building a real car to reality”.
source: click here
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Congratulations Nnebedum Sunday.
More grace to your elbows.
