* As Nobel laureate turns 90
By Chesa Chesa
President Bola Tinubu has congratulated Nigeria’s literary colossus and global icon, Professor Akinwande Oluwole Babatunde Soyinka, famously known as Wole Soyinka, on his 90th birthday, July 13, 2024.
To mark the special anniversary of the writer’s birth, the President on Friday renamed the National Theatre in Lagos after Soyinka, a globally celebrated playwright, novelist, poet, essayist, actor, singer, composer, and documentarian.
A presidency press statement announcing this noted that Soyinka “is also a foremost advocate of good governance and of a fair and just society. He won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1986 – the first African to win the Prize in that category”.
Issued by presidential spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, the statement further noted that “the Nobel Prize Laureate is a recipient of many other reputable awards, such as the Benson Medal from the Royal Society of Literature; Academy of Achievement Golden Plate Award; Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, (Lifetime Achievement); and the Europe Theatre Prize – (Special Prize).”
President Tinubu described Professor Soyinka as one of the finest minds of his generation; conforming to the highest standards of human enlightenment, but unyielding to injustice, oppression, and base impulses.
The President also saluted him as one of Nigeria’s living repositories of history, knowledge, and courage, and commends him for his valiant efforts in the trenches for the nation’s future both as a pro-democracy champion and as a trenchant voice against corruption and maladministration over several decades.
Tinubu said: “Our paths crossed during our just struggle for the enthronement of democracy in Nigeria following the annulment of June 12, 1993 presidential election. When faced with a trial in absentia and death sentence by the military regime at home, he galvanized opposition in exile through NALICON and NADECO. His global stature made him the face of our struggle to validate June 12 and restore democracy in Nigeria.
“Today, I join the world to celebrate his profound influence on generations of writers, scholars, and activists who have been inspired by his work. I celebrate him for giving us the spark to fight and confront military dictators in our country.
“I am, accordingly, delighted to have the honour to announce the decision of the Federal Government to rename the National Theatre in Iganmu, Surulere, as The Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts.”
President Tinubu wished Professor Soyinka many more years in good health and creative fulfilment as a global force for change.
