Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has criticised the scale of security protection attached to Seyi Tinubu, son of President Bola Tinubu, describing it as an alarming misuse of national security resources.
Speaking at the 20th Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism Awards in Lagos on Tuesday, Soyinka recounted a recent encounter in his Ikoyi hotel where he witnessed what he called an “excessively large security battalion” escorting a young man later identified as Seyi.
A viral 4-minute, 25-second video shared by #Nigeriastories on X captured the moment Soyinka narrated the experience, saying the convoy he saw was “large enough to take over a small country.”
‘Children must not inherit state power’
Soyinka said he was so disturbed by the sight that he reached out to National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu to verify whether such protection was officially sanctioned.
“I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “Does the child of the head of state go around with an army for protection? Children must understand their place. They are not elected leaders and must not inherit the architecture of state power.”
He added that if an insurgency were to break out, perhaps Seyi’s heavily armed convoy should be deployed to battle it — a humorous remark underscoring Nigeria’s strained and misallocated security resources.
Regional concerns and Lagos demolitions
Soyinka also warned against Nigeria’s involvement in the recently halted coup attempt in the Republic of Benin, describing it as “another unnecessary military entanglement” at a time the country is struggling with its own internal security challenges.
“What happens in Benin inevitably affects us,” he said, urging the government to prioritise strengthening democratic institutions over military posturing.
On domestic issues, Soyinka criticised the ongoing demolitions in Lagos, saying he had received troubling images and accounts from displaced families. He urged the authorities to ensure that urban reforms are carried out with dignity and proper protection for vulnerable residents.
He also charged journalists to maintain rigorous editorial standards, warning that the growing abuse of social media could trigger future conflicts.
The video, posted at about 10:18 p.m. on Tuesday, had gathered more than 27,000 views, 466 reposts and 81 quotes.
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