‘I Am Not About To Bark At You’ – Soyinka Taunts Obasanjo Over ‘Disrespect’ To Oyo Monarchs

Nigerian Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has mocked former President Olusegun Obasanjo over his action towards traditional rulers at an event in Iseyin, Oyo state.

Naija News recalls that Obasanjo, during the commissioning of the Iseyin Campus of the College of Agricultural Sciences and Renewable Natural Resources of the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, tongue-lashed the Oyo monarchs for not standing up to honour him and the state governor, Seyi Makinde when they were called to the podium.

As Obasanjo’s action has continued to receive wide criticism for ‘disrespecting’ the traditional institutions and an insult to Yoruba culture, Soyinka has slammed the ex-president in a recent video.

In a video shared by Vanguard, Soyinka, at an event, told some monarchs at the gathering that he was not in their presence to bark at them to stand up and sit down, which made them laugh.

Watch the video below:

Obasanjo Was Right

Meanwhile, the vice president (Southwest) of the Historical Society of Nigeria, Dr. Fidelis Enang Egbe, has shared his thoughts on the actions of former president Olusegun Obasanjo towards some Oyo traditional rulers.

During an interview with Daily Sun, Egbe opined that the former president’s action manifested the negative impact of colonialism.

He insisted that traditional rulers were revered and regarded as supreme during pre-colonial times. However, the reverse is now the case because the colonial masters have placed the president and governors above the traditional rulers.

Egbe stated that Obasanjo might have been right when he pointed out that the monarchs should stand up for the governor, but he should not have humiliated them publicly.