Prof. Wole Soyinka, a Nobel laureate, has stated that he did not advocate or encourage Nigerians to vote for President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015.
Soyinka stated this during a press conference in Lagos on Thursday, April 7, 2022. He stated that while urging Nigerians to vote out Jonathan, he does not support Buhari.
During the run-up to the 2015 election, the Nobel laureate was a vocal opponent of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s government.
He said he didn’t vote for Buhari and didn’t ask anyone to vote for the APC presidential candidate in 2015.
Soyinka said: “Jonathan had a chance to win that election, and I told him this. He blew it. He blew it on many levels.
“Before the election, I told him frankly. I told him why I was not going to vote for or support him.
That was because he lost the confidence and trust of the people; a couple of actions and inactions, including his failure to tackle corruption. Despite that, it is false to say that I supported the election of Buhari.
“If I believed that is what I should do, I would not hesitate one moment to come out and say this is the candidate. I challenge anyone to mention where I said to vote for Buhari ; on what occasion and in what language?
Also read 2023 Election: Thirteen presidential aspirants emerge under PDP“What I said very distinctly is ‘do not vote for Jonathan’. I don’t regret that because the level of corruption at that stage was such a number.
“It is a shame that one has to recall negativities. At no time did I ever say ‘vote for Buhari’. You can’t find it anywhere.
I did not vote for Buhari. If you do not believe me, go and ask the security man in Abeokuta who used to accompany me, if I left my house that day.”
Soyinka previously attacked President Muhammadu Buhari’s government in May 2021. He was cited as stating he didn’t believe in the Buhari administration’s competence owing to systemic failure.
He stated that Nigeria had missed an opportunity to reconcile and that he did not believe Buhari’s government could unite the country.
