Alake of Egbaland declares July 13th Wole Soyinka Day

The Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, has declared July 13th of every year as the Wole Soyinka Day.

This is coming ahead of the 90th birthday of Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, who hails from Abeokuta, Ogun State.

Oba Gbadebo declaring July 13th in honour of Soyinka said the day is for all Egba sons and daughters across the world.

“Wole Soyinka has done a lot in the world of Theatre Arts in Nigeria as those he brought up both in Ibadan and Ife are still bringing others up,” the Alake said.

“There is no end to the production of great people in that industry, therefore, we will be honouring him by declaring July 13th as the Wole Soyinka Day for all Egba sons and daughters worldwide.”

Soyinka won the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature for his wide cultural perspective and poetic overtones fashioning the drama of existence.

The Nigerian playwright, novelist, poet and essayist in the English language was the first sub-Saharan African to be honoured in that category.

In 1954, he attended Government College, Ibadan (GCI) and subsequently University College, Ibadan before proceeding to the University of Leeds in England.

After studying in Nigeria and the United Kingdom (UK), Soyinka worked with the Royal Court Theatre in London.

He went ahead to write plays that were produced in both Nigeria and the UK in theatres as well as on radio.

Soyinka played a very active role in Nigeria’s political history and its campaign for independence from British colonial rule.

In 1965, he seized the Western Nigeria Broadcasting Service studio after which he made a broadcast where he demanded for the cancellation of the Western Nigeria Regional elections.

Soyinka was also an active player in the transition of the Nigerian government from military rule to democracy in 1999.