Bukola Afeni
Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has condemned what he described as the excessive deployment of armed security personnel around members of President Bola Tinubu’s family, saying it reflects misplaced priorities in Nigeria’s security architecture.
Soyinka spoke on Tuesday at the 20th Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) Awards in Lagos, where he recounted an encounter that left him “astonished.”
According to him, he was leaving his hotel in Ikoyi when he noticed what appeared to be a movie set due to the overwhelming presence of armed officers.
“I was coming out of my hotel, and I saw what looked like a film set. I said, ‘Oh, they are shooting a film on the grounds of the hotel,’” he recalled.
He said a young man approached and greeted him politely, but he later discovered from his driver that the individual was President Tinubu’s son. Soyinka was stunned by the size and intensity of the security detail around him.
“I looked around, and there was nearly a whole battalion occupying the hotel grounds. At least 15 heavily armed security personnel enough to take over a small neighbouring city like Benin,” he said.
Concerned by what he witnessed, Soyinka said he attempted to reach the National Security Adviser despite the official being outside the country at the time.
“I said, ‘I’ve just seen something I can’t believe. I don’t understand,’ and I described the scene to him,” Soyinka added.
