Lagos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola yesterday said the state government is prepared to provide funds required to research into measures that can lead to finding cure for the deadly Ebola Virus disease (EVD).

Fashola gave the assurance during the disbursement of grants to 31 beneficiaries whose research proposals have been approved by the Lagos State Research and Development Council.

He specifically challenged Professor Maurice Iwu to come up with a lucid proposal on his Bitter Kola theory , saying the state government would be willing to sponsor it.

The governor also challenged scholars and researchers in the country to move beyond title earning to contributing meaningfully to the development of the country through their researches.

According to him, professors, PHD holders and scholars are respected not because of the finery of their titles but because of their intelligence and what they have to offer the society.

He added that the state has taken a giant stride by disbursing research grants to scientists and researchers who have proposals on what can move our society forward.

According to him, “I was curious about what Professor Maurice Iwu was doing with election if he was already doing research on how Bitter Kola can help cure some diseases. He should come back and do his work because really this is his core competence and if he is listening to me, I am challenging him that he will be able to reopen the frontiers of that research and present it to this organisation.

“It is something that I am sure that we would be looking at. For me, our world is moving quickly and we must participate in it. We must be visible and active theatre of thinking and ideas.”