LET SOYINKA BE

        LET WOLE SOYINKA BE
      The media and social networks have been awash with the news of the celebrated Nigerian writer and Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka's noticeable absence from the renowned African novelist and master story teller,late Chinua Achebe's funereal. Wole Soyinka has typically been roundly criticized for being too busy to pay his contemporary his last respect.
    This is rather uncharitable. People have diverse ways of paying dead people their last respects. Being physically present in the day of the final burial or lying in state does not translate to genuine love. After all, your sworn enemies could attend your final burial out of sheer curiosity and taunt to be doubly sure that you have actually been dispatched to the world beyond.
   Come to think of it, in his lifetime, Achebe and Soyinka were never particularly close. Being in the same profession and being contemporaries does not automatically translate to affinity. It reminds me of the sleeky footballer and super star, Christian Ronaldo who recently confirmed that he is definitely not a personal friend to the four times World Footballer of the Year winner,the immensely talented Messi. According to Ronaldo,they only relate on professional level;no more,no less.
  Please,we should allow Achebe to rest in peace and let sleeping dogs lie. Enough of the bashing on Soyinka over a normal issue.