Nobel Laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka has said that he does not care if Nigeria’s next president, vice-president, and speaker of the House of Representatives are all from the same village and religion.
Soyinka, while speaking on Channels Television’s interview programme, NewsNight on Monday, stated that he does not care as long as the capability of the individuals who are into governance is proven.
He gave the response when asked about his thoughts on the controversy that has trailed the Muslim-Muslim All Progressives Congress presidential ticket.
According to him, “I don’t give a damn if the president, the vice-President, the speaker, etc all come from the same village, they have the same religion, they belong to the same tribe.
“If, however, it is transparently, absolutely, unarguable that is a kind of genius breed that has been donated to the nation and to the world. As long as the capability of the individuals who are into governance is proven, and it is quite clear that there is no alternative, that is my position.”
Soyinka, however, noted that the same faith ticket won’t be a problem in a sane society and that Nigeria hasn’t attained such a norm.
“Now, we are talking about a society which is normal, which institutions are normal…Is Nigeria normal?” he asked.
According to him, the campaigners for a same-faith ticket should be very sensitive to the very peculiar circumstances of Nigeria and explore alternatives that have been working for the country.
The Nobel Laureate said there are unspoken arrangements that reflect the diversity and peculiarity of Nigeria and the ruling party should have been sensitive enough to recognise such peculiarity and avoid needless controversy.
“We’ve had unspoken arrangements in recognition of the peculiarity of this particular society. And so, it shouldn’t surprise you or me that a number of people find that kind of choice very questionable and unwise, especially at this time.
“I can understand that perfectly and at the same time, I recognise the right of the proposed incumbent to choose who he wants to run with if he ultimately gets into power. That is right? However, that right is not absolute because we are talking about a relative society which Nigeria is right now.”
“And so, we are in a very difficult situation and the question I ask now is: why create a controversy? Are there options that should have prevented such a controversy? Why not be very sensitive to the very peculiar circumstances of Nigeria?” he queried.
Soyinka said Nigeria is facing a crisis of faith, ethnic distrust and class distrust and politicians should seize the opportunity not to exacerbate the situation but to learn from countries like Lebanon that learnt from their civil war and unanimously agreed on zones to produce government officials.
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