Barbarians Have Taken Over Social Media — Prof. Wole Soyinka Lament

Nobel laureate, Prof Wole Soyinka, has bemoaned the sorry state that social media has fallen into in Nigeria, saying it has been drugged down to the least denominator and taken over by people he reckoned as “barbarians”.

Soyinka maintained that in other climes, social media is still valid – as a means of interaction because of the intellectual content and reasoned engagements being deployed by users. He, however, noted that here in Nigeria, the reverse is the case as those who dragged it down have swapped the intellectual quotient aspect of it.

He said this on Saturday at the 48th President’s party and his investiture as an honorary member of the prestigious Abeokuta Club, Ogun State. He said the situation has degenerated to a level where even a mere disagreement in an election could lead to one being labelled on social media as having a phobia about others.

At the investiture graced by the Alake and Paramount ruler of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo; and many prominent Egba sons and daughters, the playwright urged the nation’s community of intellectual minds to rescue the country from the monstrosity of the social media.

“In a situation where disagreement in an election can lead one being labelled something phobia or whatever. The social media is awash with accusations of one being a kind of ethnophobic. So strange to me but that is what we have been reduced to. And when that kind of accusation comes, there is no need or value in trying to say you are not. You just say, ‘Thank you very much! The complement of ethnophobia is ethnophilia.