Nigerian literary icon and Nobel Peace laureate Wole Soyinka. He is one of the few Nigerians who dared to fight when the going got tough. PHOTO | FILE | NMG
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, goes to the polls this month. If I were to present a thesis on the state of the nation since independence in 1960, I would capture the life and times of three generations: My grandfather’s, my father’s and mine.
My grandfather’s generation was born between 1900 and 1930 and grew up under colonial rule. Their country ruled by people who had neither clue nor regard for their culture and traditions. They went through the loss of dignity in their own land and rose up to fight. They started their own newspapers and reshaped the narrative and eventually secured independence for the nation in 1960.
