President Bola Tinubu has honoured Nigeria’s literary icon, Professor Wole Soyinka, by renaming the National Theatre in Iganmu, Surulere, Lagos, as the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and the Creative Arts, as the renowned writer celebrates his 90th birthday.
In a tribute to Soyinka on Friday, President Tinubu described him as a “national treasure and global icon” who has made immense contributions to Nigeria’s literary and cultural landscape.
“Professor Soyinka is a colossus, a true Renaissance person blessed with innumerable talents. He is a playwright, actor, poet, human rights and political activist, composer and singer. He is a giant bestriding not just the literary world but our nation, Africa and the world,” Tinubu stated.
The President praised Soyinka’s unwavering dedication to the values of human dignity and justice, saying “He remains the shining light of our nation, the gadfly that pokes our national soul, decrying tyranny and oppression, urging us to become better as a nation.”
Tinubu also commended Soyinka’s courage in speaking truth to power, citing his efforts to broker peace at the start of the civil war in 1967 and his imprisonment for 22 months.
Tinubu joined admirers around the world in celebrating Soyinka’s 90th birthday, which will be marked with a symposium and poetry reading in Rabat, Morocco, on July 13. “I wish Professor Soyinka an incredibly happy 90th birthday. May he continue in good health to find creative fulfilment in the next decade leading up to his centennial,” the President added.