Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has criticised President Bola Tinubu over the deployment of the Nigerian military to Benin Republic following the recent failed coup in the neighbouring country.
Soyinka argued that the President had other options before turning to the Air Force, adding that the scale of the response was unnecessary.
Soyinka made the remark on Monday at the 20th Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) Awards held in Lagos.
He referenced a recent experience he had in Lagos involving Seyi Tinubu, saying the level of security around the President’s son was enough to “quell” the failed uprising in Benin.
According to him, Nigeria did not need to mobilise fighter jets or troops to address what he described as an “insurrection to our sense of security.”
He insisted that Tinubu could have drawn from his own security circle rather than sending the military across the border.
While speaking to the audience, Soyinka narrated how he encountered Seyi Tinubu during a visit to a hotel in Ikoyi.
Soyinka said he was surprised to see a large security presence on the premises, only to later discover that the personnel were attached to Seyi.
He said: “President Tinubu didn’t have to send the Air Force and Military to deal with the insurrection to our sense of security and equilibrium; no there are easier ways of doing it.
“Let me tell you where Tinubu should have looked for forces to quell that insurrection, right here in Lagos or in Abuja perhaps, but there was no need to call the military or the Air Force.
“I will tell you what happened in one of my home visits just two months ago, I was coming out of a hotel and I saw what looked like a film set, a young man detached himself from the actors and came over to greet me very nicely politely.
“I looked around and there was nearly a whole battalion occupying the ground of that hotel in Ikoyi. So I got back in my car and asked who that young man was and he told me.
“I saw the SWAT team, a mixture of heavily armed, at least 15 heavily armed to the teeth security personnel, looked sufficient to take over a small neighbouring country like Benin.
“I think the next time the president should just call and say ‘Seyi go and quell the rebellion over there’. I was so astonished that I started looking for the NSA.”
Soyinka’s comments come amid ongoing discussions across West Africa about civilian-military relations and the growing concerns over attempted coups in the region.
