Professor Wole Soyinka has urged President Bola Tinubu to be cautious in his approach to regional security, domestic governance, and the use of state protection for privileged individuals. The Nobel laureate made these remarks at the 20th Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism Awards held in Lagos on Tuesday.
These sentiments were captured in a now-viral four-minute, 25-second video shared on Tuesday night by #Nigeriastories on X. In the video, Soyinka recounted a recent encounter in his hotel room in Ikoyi, Lagos State, which left him shocked by what he viewed as an extravagant display of state security.
He described witnessing “an excessively large security battalion assigned to a young individual close to the Presidency,” an entourage he noted was “sufficient to take over a small country.” To his surprise, the young man was revealed to be Seyi Tinubu, the President’s son.
Soyinka expressed his concern, stating that he felt compelled to contact National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu.
See his full words as transcribed by Starnews: “Transcript
“Tinubu didn’t have to send the air force and the military to deal with this particular insurrection, this threat to our sense of security and equilibrium. No. There are easier ways of doing it. Let me tell you where Tinubu should have looked for forces to quell that insurrection: right here in Lagos. Right here. Or in Abuja, perhaps, I don’t know. But there was no need to call the military or the Air Force.”
“I tell you what happened. On one of my home visits, about two months ago, I was coming out of a hotel and I saw what looked like a film set. I said, “Oh, they’re shooting a film.” That was on the grounds of this hotel. A young man detached himself from the actors, came over, and greeted me—very polite, very nice young man. I asked, “Are you shooting a film?” He said, “No.”
“Looking around, I noticed there was nearly a whole battalion occupying the grounds of that hotel right here. So, I went back to my car and asked the young driver who that young man was. He told me. I saw a SWAT team, a mixture of personnel who were at least heavily armed—about 15 or so, heavily armed to the teeth. Huh. It looked sufficient to take over a small country, a neighboring city like Benin. I think the next time the president should just call and say, “Go and quell the rebellion over there.”
“I was so astonished that I started looking for the National Security Adviser. I said, “Track him down for me.” I think they got him somewhere in Paris, but he was with the president; he was at a meeting. I said, “I’ve just seen something I can’t believe. I don’t understand,” and I described the scene to him. I said, “Do you mean that a child of the head of state goes around with an army for his protection or whatever?” I couldn’t believe it. Later on, I did some investigative journalism, and I inquired and found that apparently this”, he fumed.
During the same event, which honoured veteran poet Odia Ofeimum and others, Soyinka urged President Tinubu to reconsider the scale of security personnel assigned to Seyi, emphasising that such resources are urgently needed elsewhere. He humorously suggested that if a major insurgency were to arise, perhaps the President should ask Seyi to “go and handle it,” given the size of his escort, but noted that “beyond the humour lies a serious matter of priority and fairness.”
He cautioned that concentrating a battalion of operatives around one individual is inconsistent with a nation grappling with kidnappings, rural attacks, insurgency, and criminal violence, insisting that security deployments must reflect national realities, not privilege.
Turning his attention to the media, Soyinka commended journalists for their resilience while calling for stronger editorial discipline in an era of escalating misinformation. “The next great conflict may well be triggered by the misuse of social platforms,” he warned, urging a renewed commitment to truth and verification, and describing credible journalism as one of Nigeria’s strongest defences against chaos.
PUNCH Online reports that the video shared around 10:18 PM on Tuesday night has garnered over 27,000 views, 466 reposts, and 81 quotes.
In the viral footage, Soyinka also warned that Nigeria’s involvement in the recently halted coup attempt in the Republic of Benin poses significant risks. He characterised the intervention as “another unnecessary military entanglement next door,” arguing that Nigeria should focus on reinforcing democratic institutions rather than resorting to reflex military deployment. He cautioned that instability in neighbouring countries inevitably spills into Nigeria, noting, “What happens in Benin inevitably affects us. Instability anywhere in the region echoes across our own sense of security.”
Beyond regional matters, Soyinka addressed domestic issues, criticising the ongoing wave of demolitions across Lagos. He shared that he had received photos and testimonies from displaced families, stressing that even necessary urban reforms must prioritise dignity. “Let us not strip away the humanity of the people affected,” he stated, calling for evacuation procedures that protect the vulnerable.
Starnews reports that the trending video continues to circulate widely on X, drawing public commentary and discussion regarding governance and accountability in the country.
In late November, President Tinubu ordered the withdrawal of police officers attached to Very Important Persons across the country, directing that they be redeployed to core policing duties. As of Tuesday night, there has been no official communication or response from the Presidency, and no confirmation that the individual Soyinka raised concerns about is indeed Seyi Tinubu.
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