I accepted renaming of National Theatre after me with uncertainty – Soyinka

Soyinka said he never believed the edifice could be renovated, noting that he had considered it irredeemable until the recent revamp by the Bankers’ Committee.

Soyinka said he accepted to eat his words if the monumental turn-around of the theatre complex is what he would get in return.

Speaking at the reopening of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts on Wednesday, he admitted that he accepted the honour with mixed feelings, despite being a critic of past leaders who appropriated public monuments.

“I have to stand up in public and watch my name being put up as yet another appropriator. It just didn’t seem very well for me,” the literary giant said.

He said the Bankers’ Committee had done a great job and brought the edifice to global standards. He said that with the recreation of the edifice, Nigerians can now watch Africa Theatre at home instead of travelling abroad.

The Bankers’ Committee committed N68 billion into the project.

Soyinka said, “And one of the reasons was I nearly electrocuted two of my actors. That is how they crept into my car. The roofs were leaking, so the pools of water were everywhere. And of course, there were electric wires also.

“One other reason is nostalgia. I remember this building when it was first erected, when we did it originally. I think we called it General’s Hat, because of the shape of the roof. There’s a constant re-conception very little of what I call the African architectural intelligence in it.

“Then there’s another reason why I thought I should accept.

“Well, I was already ambushed. They shaved my head behind me. I would have raised a squawk. But, then I decided, this building belongs to me. It belongs to me.”

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the occasion directed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to float a National Arts Theatre Endowment Fund to ensure the maintenance of the national edifice.

President Tinubu said there was no controversy in the National Theatre being renamed, adding that he considered Prof Soyinka’s contributions to the arts and culture.

“Prof. Wole Soyinka is one of the greatest assets of the world. So, the renaming could not have gone to anyone else,” he said.

The President advised Nigerians to stop talking negatively about the country.

“Let us all come together to rebuild Nigeria. The youth should also renew their hope in Nigeria and work together for its continued greatness,” he said.

Cardoso said the Bankers Committee was committed to spending N68 billion in remodelling the edifice.

“The Central Bank of Nigeria, the Bankers’ Committee, the Lagos State Government, and the Ministry of Art, Culture, and the Creative Economy came together with a shared purpose to deliver this national project, with the Bankers’ Committee alone committing approximately N68 billion, not as corporate social responsibility but as a deliberate investment in Nigeria’s cultural future,” Cardoso said.

Among the prominent persons at the event were First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, who coordinated the Bankers’ Committee, Emir of Kano Muhammadu Sanusi, who is a former CBN governor; Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Minister of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa.