Nobel laureate Professor Wole Soyinka has responded to former US President Donald Trump's recent threat of potential military action in Nigeria, calling the remarks a dangerous distortion of the country's complex security situation. Soyinka also revealed a personal consequence of his criticism, stating that his US visa was revoked during Trump's administration.
Trump had issued a statement on his Truth Social platform, ordering the US Department of Defence to prepare for "possible action" and threatening to stop all aid if the Nigerian government did not halt the alleged "killing of Christians." The Nigerian federal government swiftly pushed back, asserting that insecurity affects all religious groups in the country.
Speaking in an interview with Democracy Now, Soyinka argued that Trump's framing is inflammatory and inaccurate. He emphasized the need to differentiate between long-standing internal issues and external commentary.
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“We must separate Nigeria’s long-standing internal problems from President Trump’s recent response,” Soyinka stated. “The Christian–Islam, or Islam-versus-the-rest kind of dichotomy has existed for decades. It became truly horrendous when politics got mixed up with religious differences.”
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The playwright explained that the crisis is not a simple religious war but a complex problem fueled by political manipulation and extremism. He pointed to the weaponization of religion by Nigerian politicians and a culture of impunity for violent actors.
“When perpetrators of such horrors go free, it strengthens the perception that a brutal war is going on between Christians and Muslims,” he said. “In truth, we are dealing with extremists, political Islamists, known sometimes as ISWAP or Boko Haram, not with Muslims as a people.”
Soyinka warned that Trump's "sweeping statements" do not help the situation but instead "expand the regions of hostility and make peaceful resolution even more difficult." He also shared a personal anecdote, linking his criticism of Trump to the revocation of his US visa.
“I have a feeling that I haven’t been flattering Donald Trump, and I see no reason to do that,” Soyinka revealed. He added that Trump should feel “flattered” by his past comparison of him to the notorious former Ugandan ruler, Idi Amin, citing both figures' affinity for conflict.
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