By Ola ‘Kiya, Reporting
Nobel laureate and renowned playwright, Prof. Wole Soyinka says terrorists who massacred no fewer than 40 worshippers at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church, Owo have passed a message to Western Nigeria and it’s well-received.
He drew the inference on Friday during his condolence call on the Ondo State Governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, at his Alagbaka office in Akure, the state capital.
Stonix News had reported that the terrorists, hastily identified as members of ISWAP by the Federal Government, stormed the church and pumped pellets at worshipers including women and children.
Prof. Soyinka, while commiserating with the people of Owo, however, described the attack as a message.
According to the octogenarian, “We are dealing with people who are obsessed with domination; it is in their blood, it is in their Creed and their psyche that they need to dominate.”
The elder statesman noted that the attack was actually on Governor Akeredolu who has been showing leadership in terms of internal liberation for Western Nigeria.
He stress that the governor was the target and there was “no question about that. It was not an accident, and it is a passing massage to the rest of us.”
Soyinka said he wanted the Governor to know that the message has been received and understood.
Governor Akeredolu, while responding to the august visitor, appreciated the Nobel laureate for the condolence visit, saying that the state would remain hugely indebted to him.
Akeredolu described the attack as it “a dagger drawn to our heart, and it is an assault on our psyche. The psyche of those of us in the South-West and Western Region.”
He, however, said the terrorists thought they could create “some fears in us but they made a mistake because this will make us more fierce in our condemnation of their actions. And we are not hiding it.”
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