Obi visits Soyinka, calls him fighter for justice, equity

Obi visits Soyinka, calls him fighter for justice, equity

Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, on Sunday paid a visit Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, after a disagreement the obi’s supporters had with the literary giant following his criticism of LP’s vice-presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed.

He said Soyinka remains respected international literary icon, a fighter for justice, fairness and a committed nationalist.

Obi spoke on the visit in a post on his official Twitter handle on Sunday, describing it as enriching.

He wrote, “Today, I visited one of Nigeria’s most revered figures and an international literary icon, Prof Wole Soyinka.

“Prof Soyinka has been my father whom I hold in very esteem for what he has achieved and stands for in the struggle for a better Nigeria.

“His reputation as a fighter for justice and equity in our society has been legendary and we will NEVER ignore them.

“I had a very useful and enriching discussion about his aspirations for a better and greater Nigeria, and he shared a lot with me about his dream for a greater, and more inclusive Nigeria.

“I reminded the Nobel laureate of the huge price he paid just before the outbreak of civil war, fighting for the cause of the Igbos

“I cherish this Sunday visit which was intended to erase the needless misconceptions about the relationship between the great icon and the obidient family.”

The development comes days after Soyinka came under criticism on social media by the supporters base of the LP candidate, popularly known as” Obidients”.

Soyinka had in a statement said Obidients wear their refusal to “accept constructive criticism as a badge of honour”, while addressing criticism he received from supporters of the LP.

On April 5, Soyinka faulted the remarks by Datti Baba-Ahmed, saying they contained “fascistic language”.

Baba-Ahmed had 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”.

 

Obi visits Soyinka, calls him fighter for justice, equity