NOBEL Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has decried the rate at which Nigerian leaders consult marabouts and prophets in a bid to hold onto political power.

Nigerian leaders, he said, were in the habit of sacrificing animals in order to remain in power.

Soyinka spoke in Port Harcourt on Monday at a two-day education summit.

He observed that the situation was encouraging students to join cultism, adding that the rot in the nation’s education system was trickling down to secondary and primary schools.

The renowned author, who chaired the occasion, noted that normal university cultures like fraternities had been misconstrued to mean cultism.

He said, “Give me the name of any head of state who has not been consulting marabouts and prophets and so on, sacrificing goats, animals in the dead of night to receive a third term in office and so on and then you start blaming students, they are imitating the same thing the infirmity society itself has become.

“So, they can no longer distinguish between a genuine fraternity and a secret cult of which society is riddled all the way from the top.

“The rot in our education system is trickling all the way down to secondary schools, into some primary schools. Normal university cultures like fraternities have been misconstrued.”

On the activities of Boko Haram in the North, Soyinka explained that members of the sect were not sufficiently educated about their religion.

Soyinka, who noted that Islamic fundamentalist needed to be re-educated about their history and culture, also canvassed support for the creation of almajiri schools.

He added, “Those who call themselves Boko Haram, for instance, claim to be educated; educated to mean books. But they are not sufficiently educated, even about their religion to know that some of the greatest philosophers came from that religion, some of the greatest mathematicians were the pioneers.

“So, these killers roaming around, saying that they hate western education; they are uneducated; but they think they are educated.

“They (Boko Haram members) have been taught on a monorail, one-track lane. They need to be re-educated, even about their own history, their own culture.”

Soyinka described the situation as desperate and called for a proper supervision of the content and method of teaching in almajiri schools.

Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, decried the attitude of school heads and teachers, who collect illegal levies from their pupils and students against his administration’s free education policy.

Amaechi also ordered the issuance of employment letters to 13,000 teachers to make up for the shortage of personnel in the state’s model schools.

http://www.punchng.com/news/soyinka-accuses-leaders-of-patronising-marabouts-prophets/

Everybody get him own maga. The politicians are the prophets maga and the masses are the politicians maga.

Second to comment

False prophet, false leader, hopeless masses.

4

3rd to comment

God day

Dem soyinka sef get hin own prophet nd marabout

Education in a state of fiasco! Nigeria as a jungle programmed right from inception in 1914 with the forced marriage of cows, goats, pigs to mingle with humans. We await the divorce sooner

Den soyinka sef get hin own prophet nd marabout

Education in a state of fiasco! Nigeria as a jungle programmed right from inception in 1914 to fail with the forced marriage of cows, goats, pigs to mingle with humans. We await the divorce sooner

Soyinka is on point all the time! Vote Soyinka come 2015 for President!!

mr_man: Everybody get him own maga. The politicians are the prophets maga and the masses are the politicians maga.

Send me your account number. Such sagacity must not go unrewarded!

Sweetapple007: False prophet, false leader, hopeless masses.

Should they now consult Pirates, Seadogs, or Ifa?

Second to comment

What's your comment??

ckkris:

Should they now consult Pirates, Seadogs, or Ifa?

ABEG HELP ME ASK THE SENILE OLD FOOL.

nairaman66: Soyinka is on point all the time! Vote Soyinka come 2015 for President!!

That's why he appoints himself Criticiser-in-Chief, or Cultist-in-Chief

True words from a great man....two things I learnt from his words: 1,politicians are the root of our problems,the hunger for power and money has caused our great nation a terrible fall. 2. Muslims or the Boko harams should go go back to the basis and they will see that truely great pioneers who hunger for great knowledge were muslims. They loved knowledge. So I don't understand the agitations of Boko boys.......

Prof iz on point o

Nigerian leaders, he said, were in the habit of sacrificing animals in order to remain in power

Did Soyinka refer to Human sacrifice as Animals? These politicians prefer Human sacrifice to Animals if really Doyinka literally mean Animals..

it feels good listening to men such as prof speak. I dream of a Nigeria where such men man the various instruments of state. And nolonger shall we again be turned into a laughing stock in the comit of nations.

I thought Soyinka is an Atheist. He does not believe in God .

Many prophets in Nigeria are false prophets.

Lilimax:
I thought Soyinka is an Atheist. He does not believe in God .

Soyinka ia a traditional worshipper of Sango
And please the article is about the state of education in Nigeria and the brainless nature of our leaders in seeking supernatural aid not to improve the index of living but for their selfish perpetuation in power
Why can't so many contributors to this thread get this?

Cmoyor: Dem soyinka sef get hin own prophet nd marabout

Prof himself na ifa priest. Abi no be that one be marabout? Seriously @op, did they consult him? Did he turn them down?

was he not the one that started fraternities?.wats d diff btw cultism and fraternism?.

supereagle: Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, decried the attitude of school heads and teachers, who collect illegal levies from their pupils and students against his administration’s free education policy.

Amaechi also ordered the issuance of employment letters to 13,000 teachers to make up for the shortage of personnel in the state’s model schools.

http://www.punchng.com/news/soyinka-accuses-leaders-of-patronising-marabouts-prophets/

What has that to do with the news as far the heading it came under? Btw, Prof. Soyinka is talking talk I don't quite grasp.

Thanks for reminding nigerians not to fall for 'religious' campaigns anymore.


Frawzey

For someone who is a pioneer and contributor to what became cults. That's like kettle calling pot black. You can act like a saint. I respect him as a playwright but that's all. It is not the consultation that's the problem its the individuals. For how long can evil prevail. They should ask dictators of the world

ckkris:

That's why he appoints himself Criticiser-in-Chief , or Cultist-in-Chief

Funny how anybody who criticises this government becomes an object of name-calling and unwarranted hate.

Keep it up.


Frawzey