President Bola Tinubu has named the Arterial Road N20 in Abuja, which connects the Northern Parkway and the Outer Northern expressway, after writer and Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka.
According to reports, the highway’s name was chosen based on the advice of the Federal Capital Territory Administration, which is overseen by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, said via his X on Tuesday that the roadway will henceforth be known as the Professor Wole Soyinka roadway.
Tinubu named the route after Soyinka, who will be 90 on July 13, citing his achievements in literature and his role in raising Nigeria’s global cultural stature.
The president further claimed that the novelist had brought dignity and fame to Nigeria via his matchless achievements in literature and unrelenting dedication to human rights and social justice.
Tinubu stated that the gesture is a fitting tribute to a man who has dedicated his life to the pursuit of truth, freedom, and artistic excellence.
“Professor Wole Soyinka has brought immense honour and fame to Nigeria through his unparalleled contributions to literature and his unwavering commitment to human rights and social justice.
“Naming this highway after him is a fitting tribute to a man who has dedicated his life to the pursuit of truth, freedom, and artistic excellence,” the president said.
Soyinka recently came under criticism for claiming that Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential contender for 2023, was unfit to run the country.
The poet stated that this was visible in the behaviour of his supporters, known as ‘Obidients’, during the 2023 general election campaign.
Soyinka claimed that Obi’s unwillingness to intervene in his followers’ online attacks on those with opposing opinions demonstrated that he was unqualified to be Nigeria’s president.
