I Didn't Break Into A Radio Station, I Sneaked In - Wole Soyinka Speaks At 90 ~ OsazuwaAkonedo
I Didn't Break Into A Radio Station, I Sneaked In - Wole Soyinka Speaks At 90 ~ OsazuwaAkonedo #Abeokuta #Ahmed #Akinwande #Al #Ari #Babatunde #Bola #Iganmu #Ijegba #Margarita #Morocco #NADECO #NALICON #news #Ogun #Oluwole #PAWA #Rabat #Soyinka #Tinubu https://osazuwaakonedo.news/i-didnt-break-into-a-radio-station-i-sneaked-in-wole-soyinka-speaks-at-90/16/07/2024/ #Life Published: July 16th, 2024 Reshared: July 16, 2024 5:56 pm Professor Wole Soyinka on the occasion of his 90th birthday celebration has explained why he
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00:00Professor Wole Soyka, on the occasion of his military birthday celebration, has explained why he broke into a radio station during the military era in Nigeria, which seemingly fuelled the political public unrest in the then Western region and aftermath of it.
00:11Directly or indirectly led to the Nigeria-Biafra civil war that ended with millions of people, including children and women, killed.
00:17Wole Soyka, who is known to be the founder of Pirates Confraternity, a group also known to be the first secret cults in Nigeria,
00:23was charged with armed robbery for breaking into the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation studio in Ibanon during the heavy days of the Western region's political crisis in 1965.
00:31Wole Soyka, who was said to be fully armed, was alleged to have asked the man in the studio to use his own Soyka's recording, asking the printer to get out.
00:39Wole Soyka received the Nobel Prize for Literature from King Gustav of Sweden on December 1986 as the first African Nobel laureate in literature.
00:46As part of activities to mark his 98th birthday celebration at the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco, Professor Wole Soyka was awarded the gold medal for his contribution to the development of world literature.
00:56The award was presented to him by Margarita Al, president of the World Organization of Writers, WOW.
01:02Professor Wole Soyka, in a statement on Monday, said he did not envisage that he would live up to 90 years.
01:08Soyka stated this at the 2024 edition of his International Cultural Exchange Program, held at his early residence, Ijenwa, Abeokuta.
01:16The Nobel laureate said he decided to be a writer to correct some anomalies from stories he listened to while growing up.
01:22Given the reason he broke into a radio station during the military era, Soyka said,
01:26I never broke into a radio station, but sneaked in.
01:29The radio station was holding onto something that belonged to the people, and I decided to retrieve it.
01:34If that item had been played, it would have demoralized the people and established the culture of brutality.
01:39Wole Soyka condemned Nigerians for always criticizing the state, but refused to examine themselves.
01:44According to him, crimes like kidnapping and robbery, among others, are not because of poverty or equality,
01:50but selfishness and the desire to lead a luxury life.
01:53The 2024 Wole Soyka International Cultural Exchange Program drew students from different parts of the country
01:58who participated in an essay competition on national and international topics.
02:02The Ogun State Government, led by Governor Dapo Abiodun,
02:05awarded scholarships to nine students who excelled in an essay competition marking Professor Wole Soyka's 98th birthday.
02:11The competition was part of the 2024 Wole Soyka International Cultural Exchange Program,
02:16which aims to promote education, cultural exchange, and leadership.
02:20Celebrating Wole Soyka at 90, President Bola Andretinubu in a statement he personally signed said,
02:25I am pleased to join admirers around the world in celebrating the 98th birthday of Nigeria's iconic son
02:30and the world-renowned Professor Akiwonde Oluwole Babatunde, famously known as Wole Soyka.
02:35Tomorrow, July 13th, will be the climax of the series of local and international activities held in his honor.
02:41To underscore the literary giant's global relevance, a symposium and poetry reading were held in Rabat, Morocco, on the 9th of July.
02:48The event was organized by the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco and the Pan-African Writers' Association, POWER.
02:54Professor Soyka, the first African to win the Nobel Literature Prize in 1986,
02:58deserves all the accolades as he marks the milestone of 90 years on earth.
03:02Having written Prostate Cancer, this milestone is a fitting testament to his ruggedness as a person and the significance of his work.
03:09It is also fitting we celebrate this national treasure while he is still with us.
03:13I am, accordingly, delighted to have the honor to announce the decision of the federal government
03:17to rename the National Theatre in Igumu, Suruleri, as the Wole Soyka Center for Cultural and the Creative Arts.
03:22We do not only celebrate Soyka's remarkable literary achievements,
03:25but also his unwavering dedication to the values of human dignity and justice.
03:29Our paths crossed during our just struggle for the improvement of democracy in Nigeria
03:33following the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.
03:37When first with a trial in absentia and then sentenced by the military regime at home,
03:41he galvanized opposition in exile through Nalekon and Nadeko.
03:44His global stature made him the first of our struggle to validate June 12 and restore democracy in Nigeria.
03:50Today, I join the world to celebrate his profound influence on generations of writers, scholars,
03:55and activists who have been inspired by his work.
03:58I celebrate him for giving us the spark to fight and confront military dictators in our country.
04:02I celebrate him for his enduring spirit and for teaching us that literature and drama
04:06can be used as a powerful tool to challenge his status quo.
04:09I wish Professor Soyka an incredibly happy 90th birthday.
04:12May he continue in good health to find creative fulfillment in the next decade leading up to his centennial.
04:17May he continue to inspire us all to build a nation where people are free from oppression
04:21and our teeming youths can live up to their dreams without being a wasted generation.
04:25President Bolotinwu Woods, ending quote.
04:28Satuwa Omnedo, bringing youth the news in a more digital way.