A former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Kingsley Moghalu, has said Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, will survive criticisms from supporters of the Labour Party (LP).
The revered author had said recent remarks by Datti Baba-Ahmed, vice-presidential candidate of the LP, contain “fascistic language”.
On March 22, in an interview with Channels TV, Datti said the country has no president-elect despite the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announcing Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the winner of the election.
The LP vice-presidential candidate said Tinubu would be leading an unconstitutional government if sworn into office because the APC candidate “has not met requirements of the law”.
The interview has elicited criticism from political stakeholders as well as a N5 million fine for the TV station.
Reacting in a chat with Arise TV on Wednesday, Soyinka said the remarks are a “kind of do-or-die attitude and provocation” that goes contrary to democratic disposition.
He added that the LP vice-presidential candidate tried to “dictate to the supreme arbiter of the nation”, adding that it was unacceptable.
In a subsequent statement, Soyinka said he warned Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the LP, that his supporters — dubbed ‘Obidients’ — may cost him the election.
Soyinka’s statement has earned him criticism and abuse from the ‘Obidients’, especially on social media platforms.
The Nobel laureate has remained atop the trending list on Twitter for almost 24 hours.
There’s a reason they chose Wole Soyinka. His international reputation. Then imagine an internationally acclaimed literary legend branding a movement as fascist on international TV! And someone wants to tell me he or the people who sent him didn’t know what they were doing
In a tweet to show support for Soyinka, Moghalu said the Nobel laureate is objective and principled, adding that he does not pay high regard to criticisms of him.
“Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka is a principled fighter for justice in our country and around the world,” Moghalu tweeted.
“He is a phenomenon that unlettered and uncultured people may not fully understand in an age of lazy social media in which many don’t read or think deep.
“His endorsement of my 2019 presidential candidacy in my short-lived but impactful foray into Nigerian electoral politics remains one of the greatest honors of my life.
“I view very dimly any criticism of him simply because he’s objective. He survived dictators. He will survive you.”
