South-WEST Report
CANE GENIUS!
Man builds ‘basket car’
•To donate vehicle to Ladoja campaign team
From AKEEB ALARAPE, Osogbo
Friday, February 25, 2011
•Frontview of the car
Photo: Sun News Publishing
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[b]A revolution is in the offing in the auto industry. A 40 years old cane craft artist in Ibadan, Oyo State, has just made a delivery of car, whose accessories were made of canes. Obaniyi Ojo, who said he has been in the business of cane craft for 20 years, told Daily Sun, that his motive was to prove two points about the ingenuity of the Black Race. Code-named Basket Car, Ojo said:

“I want to prove a point that it is not only the educated elite that can make positive change in the society. We, the artisans also have talents to effect a change and make positive impact in the society. “That is why I decided that I too must do something that will make people to recognize me and know me across the whole world and by extension prove to the world that African and indeed the entire Black Race have very talented people.”

A secondary school certificate holder from Oke-Bola Comprehensive High School, Ibadan, Ojo gave a background of how he came about his project and the commitment he injected into it.
“I have been having the vision for a very long time. It is my own contribution to the development of Nigeria and Africa in general. I built the car from the beginning. I first bought the chassis I approached an engineer and invited a panel beater; I told them of my plan and later showed them my diagram. I had already done the sketches and I tasked them to contribute their own ideas.[/b]

“The first set we built was not that strong and solid, which made us to condemn it. We decided to use iron materials in-between the canes as protector so as to avoid any injury in case of any unexpected happenings. “The roof was made of canes but with iron protector within to prevent the occupants from being soaked during rainy season. It took me a long time to construct the car. I spent about seven years on the car. As I was building it, I was also condemning it till I got it right.”

Speaking about the open back of the car, Ojo stated that he decided to leave it open as a statement of fashion and to suit the purpose he was targeted. He planned to donate the car for the electioneering of the former governor of Oyo State, Senator Rasidi Ladoja. “I just hope to present the car as a gift to Senator Ladoja as my own mark of appreciation of his astute leadership and prudent management of public money while in office and as a contribution to his anticipated second coming.

“I am still working on another one, which I want him to use for his campaign tours. I have been in the business of cane craft since the last 20 years and I assure you the second will be better than this.”
He called on the Federal Government to tap the job opportunities in the cane craft business to address unemployment in the country, saying it requires only six month for any intelligent person to grasp the art:
“My vision is to engage the jobless youths in the society. I wish the federal Government can establish a job centre about one or two plots where jobless youths, who always surface at political rallies, can be trained and empowered.

“After campaigns, these youths have nothing else to do but I can train them and within six months, they will be on their own. They will be able to use canes to make all kinds of chairs, table and other household.” Ojo, however lamented that the vehicle licensing office has refused to recognize his ingenuity by declining him a vehicle license for his cane car and failed to issue him the necessary particulars as required of a vehicle owner:

“I have gone to the licensing office for the necessary papers and documents for the car but they told me they have no provision for ‘Cane Vehicle’ in the law that set them up. So, anytime I am stopped by the police, I would tell them to approach the licensing office and prove my claim.”

Ask him to give the name and model of his car, he smiled: “It is Obaniyi Cane Car (OCC)’.
Ojo gave assurance of the strength of his car, saying that apart from the fact that it could conveniently convey eight passengers, he had traveled with it to and from Lagos once without any hitch.


http://sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2011/feb/25/national-25-02-2011-004.htm

Nice one!

Igbo Kwenu!

Its a great artwork. The dude should be sponsored to an exhibition.

Beaf:

Its a great artwork. The dude should be sponsored to an exhibition.

A basket car would make positive change in the community? How about a basket house? o ma se! Ppl ti suffer. 

Mobinga: