Professor Wole Soyinka, a Nobel Laureate, has disparaged Russian President Vladimir Putin by comparing him to homicidal herdsmen.
In a pre-recorded interview that aired on Channels TV on Monday, the most prominent dramatist was interviewed.
“The honourable spot of the world shrinks by the day,” Soyinka explained on why he may have been reticent on national issues of late.
He added, “Would you have anticipated putting invading Ukraine? Bombarding civilians with such fiendish glee? And what is Ukraine’s crime? It says leave me to associate with whoever I want. And I ask myself what is the difference between Putin and the herdsmen who corner the lands of farmers and invade? They kill, they slaughter, they burn, scatter the families completely, and render them homeless overnight. They and Putin should get together. It is the same mentality.”
The octogenarian also noted that his temperament does not allow him to tolerate anybody who wants to chase him out of his “God-given earth”.
“The idea that you can unleash terror on me because you want my little patch of territory or you want my soul, that is you want to subjugate me, you want to turn me into a slave. Well, I would sort that out first and then I’ll make up my mind whether I want to leave.
“So, each outrage, unfortunately, has the opposite effect. Whether the outrage is taking place in Benue, Kaduna, or is taking place in Owo. Or whether it is taking place right here on the (Ogun State) border; we’ve been subjected also to this lunacy, of the subjugation mentality which some minority people hold. And I find it very difficult to accept to be chased out of my own entitled portion of the earth.”
Since the Russian Federation's onslaught against Ukraine began on February 24, 2022, Vladimir Putin and his counterpart from Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, have been locked in a terrible battle.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights reports that as of July 2022, 12,272 civilian casualties, including 5,237 fatalities and 7,035 injuries, had been reported in the nation.