Catholic missionary priest working in Gambia, Rev Fr Kelvin Ugwu, has criticised Nobel laureate Prof Wole Soyinka over what he described as the writer’s silence on the hardship facing Nigerians under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

In a Facebook post titled ‘Prof Soyinka then vs Prof Soyinka now’, on Saturday, the priest compared Soyinka’s past activism under previous administrations to his perceived quietness in recent times.

Ugwu recalled that during the administrations of former presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan, Soyinka was outspoken, describing him as a “movement” and “social crusader” who openly challenged government excesses.

He noted, however, that Soyinka’s criticism became less vocal during late President Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure and has now, according to him, completely faded under Tinubu’s government.

“Then came Tinubu, a man with no clear identity and whose academic records are in question. In just two years in office, he has plunged Nigeria into deeper debt and Nigerians into multidimensional poverty,” Ugwu wrote.

He lamented that Soyinka, once a prominent voice for the masses, had “suddenly become deaf and dumb” under Tinubu’s administration, questioning what may have caused the change.

Ugwu also dismissed suggestions that ethnic loyalty was behind Soyinka’s silence, saying the Nobel laureate had criticised past Yoruba leaders, including Obasanjo.

He further insinuated that Tinubu’s influence over critics might be inexplicable, adding humorously that “if this is what people mean by juju, then juju is powerful”.

He suddenly became deaf, dumb under Tinubu – Fr Kelvin calls out Soyinka