Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has roundly condemned the arraignment of Mr. Omoyele Sowre, publisher of Sahara Reporters, an online news portal, and presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, AAC, in the February 23 Presidential election, describing it as ‘utterly depressing news’.
In a short statement he sent from abroad, Soyinka said when he heard of the news of Sowore’s arraignment for treasonable felony, money laundering, among others, he thought it was fake news “of which Nigerians have become the greatest practitioners”.
Below is the full text of Soyinka’s statement:
BACK TO THE TREASONABLY FELONIOUS FORMULA
This is utterly depressing news. So, the Sowore affair has moved beyond harassment and taken on a sinister direction. Outside the country where I happened to be engaged at the moment, I can testify that the immediate reaction around me was to dismiss this as yet another grotesque product of Fake News, of which Nigerians have become the greatest practitioners. I confess that I also joined in this school of thought — at the start.
Further checks have however confirmed that this government has indeed attained an unprecedented level of paranoia. I do not believe that the Justice department itself believes in these improbable charges, as formally publicised. So, once again, we inscribe in our annals another season of treasonable felony, History still guards some lessons we have yet to digest, much less from which to learn.
Welcome to the Club, Mr. Omoyele Sowore.
Wole SOYINKA
