Soyinka Recommends Jail Term for Corrupt Persons

Sheriff Balogun in Abeokuta
Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, on Tuesday recommended jail term for anyone found guilty of corruption.

Soyinka stated this while speaking on the theme: ‘Corruption: A battle for the Arts’, during an event organised for the 82 students who participated in the edition of the Wole Soyinka International Cultural Exchange programme to mark his 82-year birthday.

 According to him, anybody caught or found to be guilty of graft should be made to face the full wrath of the law.

 While calling on stakeholders across the country to join hands in the fight against corruption, Soyinka said: “It is a battle for everybody.

“The nation must be returned to its place of honour and dignity where anybody found to be corrupt in the society should be ashamed to walk freely.”
Speaking on the way forward on the corruption menace, Soyinka said corruption had eaten deep into the fabrics of the nation.

While explaining on the rationale behind the theme, he said: “Yes, it’s a battle for everybody, and definitely the arts must be in the front as usual, not just the arts, the theologians, the moralists, philosophers, architects, builders; it’s everybody’s duty, including you (journalists) and lawyers.”

 He noted that: “There is only one way for corrupt people…prison.”
Meanwhile, Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, has challenged students and youths in the country to emulate the life of heroes like Soyinka.
He urged them never to give up on Nigeria in spite of the many challenges facing the nation.

He expressed joy that many Nigerians now appear to appreciate arts while promising to extend the participation in the subsequent edition of the programme to all students in Nigerian and beyond.

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