Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has condemned what he described as the excessive and unnecessary deployment of armed security personnel around the family members of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He said such actions reflect poorly on Nigeria’s security priorities and national planning.
Soyinka made the remarks on Tuesday at the 20th Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) Awards held in Lagos.
The literary icon narrated a recent experience that left him deeply concerned about the use of state security resources. According to him, while staying at a hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos, he stepped outside and saw what appeared to be a large group of armed operatives scattered around the hotel compound.
He said the scene was so dramatic that he initially assumed a movie was being filmed.
“I was coming out of my hotel, and I saw what looked like a film set,” Soyinka recalled. “There were so many armed people that I asked if they were shooting a movie.”
Soyinka said a young man stepped forward politely to greet him, and after he got into his car, he asked his driver who the young man was. The driver informed him that it was Seyi Tinubu, the president’s son.
The Nobel laureate said he counted around 15 heavily armed security officers—what he described as “enough to take over a small neighbouring country like Benin.”
Disturbed by what he witnessed, Soyinka said he attempted to contact the National Security Adviser (NSA) to verify whether the deployment was officially sanctioned.
“I described the scene to him and asked if the child of a head of state really has to move around with an army,” he said.
Soyinka added that after conducting his own informal investigation, he learned that Seyi Tinubu reportedly travels with a large security escort regularly.
He criticised the practice, saying it was an abuse of privilege and a sign that Nigeria’s security architecture is being mismanaged.
In a sarcastic remark aimed at highlighting the absurdity of the situation, Soyinka said the president could rely on his son’s personal security team whenever there is a national threat or uprising.
“Next time there’s an insurrection, the president should just call Seyi. He already has troops under his command,” he joked.
Soyinka emphasised that while it is customary for presidents to protect their families, the level of security surrounding Seyi Tinubu was excessive and unnecessary. He said such behaviour sends the wrong message about governance and the use of public resources.
“This is not the first country whose head of state has a family. But children should know their place. They are not heads of state,” he said.
He warned that focusing so many security resources on one individual weakens the country’s overall security structure and reduces trust in leadership decision-making.
