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King Nebu:” Wole Soyinka Describes Jonathan As “Nebuchadnezzar’ (throwback)

Published by admin on October 29th, 2025.

King Nebu:” Wole Soyinka Describes Jonathan As “Nebuchadnezzar’ (throwback)

2014 : Nigerians have been cast into a furnace, Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka said yesterday

With a biblical allusion, the playwright stated his opinion on the state of the nation, likening President Goodluck Jonathan to the Babylonian autocrat, [b]King Nebuchadnezzar.

He said Nigerians had been cast into a “furnace” in the manner of Shadrach, Meshak and Abednego.

Unfortunately for the citizens, no divine miracle appears to be at hand for a last-minute rescue, Soyinka said.

The three biblical characters, in the book of Daniel, were cast into a fiery furnace for refusing to bow down to an image made by the despotic king, but they were miraculously rescued.

Soyinka, at a media briefing at the Freedom Park in Lagos, with the theme: “King Nebuchadnezzar – the reign of impunity”, said Jonathan’s administration had become known for lawlessness.

“You should easily recall why I opted for King Nebu – the figure that currently sits on the top of our political pile himself evoked it, albeit in a context that virtuously disclaimed any similarities, even tendencies.

“Perhaps he meant it at the time when he claimed: ‘I am not Nebuchadnezzar’. Perhaps not. One judges leaders on acts, however, not pronouncements, which are often as reliable as electoral promises.

“King Nebu remains relevant – and not only for leadership. We, the citizens, are beginning to feel the heat. We wake up each morning to a sensation that we have been cast into the furnace together with those who at least committed the crime of dissent or cr

iticism,” he said