Peter Uzoho

Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately launch a probe into the strange circumstances that led to the deaths of some Nigerians, including the likes of Dele Giwa, Bola Ige, and Kudirat Abiola, for the sake of giving some closure to the matter.

While speaking with selected journalists in Lagos yesterday, the renowned author said some Nigerians around the world have and could provide clues to the killings.

Soyinka has been speaking on the occasion of Nigeria’s Democracy Day, which was marked on June 12, 2025, where President Tinubu addressed the joint session of the National Assembly and awarded national honours to some of the heroes of the struggle.

While he praised the award of national honours, he, however, said there were several heroes omitted from the list, adding that he believed those honoured were a representation of the rest of the people in the struggle.

Soyinka revealed that he will be dedicating his honours to the memory of the Late Beko Ransom-Kuti, who he described as a defender of human rights, champion of good governance, and campaigner for democracy, who was detained and jailed several times by the Nigerian military.
He warned that no one should make light of the weight and importance of the June 12 struggle, as many people died, and many others were greatly injured by the military junta, which killed, tortured, and imprisoned Nigerians at the time.

Names of the heroes of democracy were announced by President Tinubu on Thursday, June 13, as part of the activities marking the 2025 Democracy Day celebration. Only 66 awardees were announced at the joint sitting of the National Assembly in Abuja.

Among the posthumous awardees were a former Chief of Staff, Shehu Musa Yar’Adua; a former NEC Chairman who oversaw the 1993 elections, Prof. Humphrey Nwosu; and the wife of MKO Abiola and martyr of the June 12 struggle, Kudirat Abiola.

The president also granted a posthumous state pardon to renowned environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and the rest of the Ogoni Nine, three decades after their controversial execution by the Sani Abacha-led military regime.

The nine other activists were also acknowledged for their sacrifices in the struggle for environmental justice and democratic ideals in Nigeria.