Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, has criticised President Muhammadu Buhari for apparently saying his government is willing to violate the law for national security.
In a statement Thursday, Mr Soyinka mocked the president by saying Mr Buhari had obviously given a deep thought to his travails under a military dictatorship and concluded that his incarceration at that time was also in the ‘national interest.’
President Muhammadu Buhari had on Sunday declared to the the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) conference that his administration would place national security above the rule of law.
In a short but terse response released yesterday, Soyinka said the declaration was typical of Buhari and urged Nigerians to brace up for the challenges ahead.
According to the erudite scholar and playwright, Buhari, while serving as a Head of State and leader of a Military junta about 30 years ago, made a similar pronouncement which culminated in the gagging of the press and incarceration of two journalists for doing their job of reporting the issues in the public domain at that time. He urged the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) under whose roof the President served the notice to brace up for the challenge and not to take it lying low.
In the statement titled “Buhari’s pernicious doctrine” Soyinka dubbed the presidents statement as perfect timing to the nationas a show to of his ill advised notions on national security trumping the rule of law ahead of the 2019 polls.
