Nobel Laureate Professor Wole Soyinka has called on President Bola Tinubu to urgently investigate the unresolved and suspicious deaths of key Nigerian figures, including Dele Giwa, Bola Ige, and Kudirat Abiola.
Speaking to select journalists in Lagos on Saturday, Soyinka said numerous Nigerians—both at home and abroad—may hold vital information that could help uncover the truth behind these high-profile killings.
The acclaimed playwright made his appeal during Nigeria’s Democracy Day commemorations on 12 June 2025, where President Tinubu addressed a joint session of the National Assembly and posthumously honoured several champions of the country’s democratic struggle.
While Soyinka welcomed the national honours bestowed during the event, he criticised notable omissions from the list. He acknowledged that the selected individuals represented a broader collective of freedom fighters but insisted more voices deserved recognition.
Soyinka also revealed he would be dedicating his own honour to the memory of Dr Beko Ransom-Kuti, describing him as an indomitable advocate for human rights, good governance, and democracy, who faced repeated imprisonment under military rule.
The literary icon emphasised the profound cost of the June 12 movement, warning against trivialising its importance. “Many paid the ultimate price,” he said. “Many were tortured, killed or imprisoned under the military regime. Their sacrifice must not be forgotten.”
His statement followed public backlash over reports that some widely admired activists, including Aisha Yesufu, were not among the 66 individuals honoured, despite earlier speculation.
Tinubu, in his address, confirmed national honours for a range of figures, including late Chief of Staff Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, 1993 electoral chief Professor Humphrey Nwosu, and Kudirat Abiola, wife of democracy icon MKO Abiola.
In a historic move, Tinubu also posthumously pardoned Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni Nine—environmental activists executed by the Abacha regime in 1995 following a trial widely condemned as unjust.
Saro-Wiwa was awarded the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON), while the remaining eight—Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levera, Felix Nuate, Baribor Bera, Barinem Kiobel, and John Kpuine—were each conferred with Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON).
The recognition marks the first time a Nigerian president has officially acknowledged the role of the Ogoni Nine in the country’s democratic journey and environmental justice movement, drawing praise from human rights advocates.
The Ogoni Nine, all members of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP), were executed after campaigning against environmental degradation in the Niger Delta, leading to global outrage and Nigeria’s temporary suspension from the Commonwealth.
