Lakes. Nigerian Wole Soyinka, Nobel Prize winner in Literature in 1986 and highly critical of President Donald Trump, stated that the United States consulate in Lagos annulled his visa.
“I want to tell the consulate (…) that I am very satisfied with the cancellation of my visa,” declared the famous Nigerian playwright and author at a press conference.
Shortly earlier this year, Soyinka had indicated that he was summoned by the US consulate for an interview as part of a renewal of his visa.
According to a letter addressed to Soyinka by the consulate, which AFP consulted, officials cited State Department rules that can “cancel a non-immigrant visa at any time, at their discretion.”
Reading the letter aloud to reporters in Lagos, Nigeria’s economic capital, Nobel declared that officials asked him to take his passport to the consulate so that his visa could be cancelled.
The 91-year-old playwright was a professor and received distinctions from American universities, especially Harvard and Cornell.
The Trump administration considers visa cancellation a key element in its fight against migration, especially targeting students who speak out about Palestinian rights.
Consulted by AFP, the US embassy in Abuja declined to comment.
Soyinka had permanent residency in the United States, but destroyed his document after Donald Trump won the first election in 2016.
Soyinka has continued to be highly critical of Trump, who is now serving a second term.