"I may reapply for restoration of my US green card"– SOYINKA says after TRUMP's conviction

Friday, May 31, 2024 - Professor Wole Soyinka has said that he may reapply for the restoration of his permanent residency in the United States following the conviction of former US President, Donald Trump.

Trump was on Thursday, May 30, convicted on all 34 charges of falsifying business records in hush money trial.

Following his conviction, the Nobel Laureate revealed plans to apply for the restoration of his US green card.

In 2016, Soyinka promised to destroy his US green card if Donald Trump won the US elections.

After Trump defeated Hilary Clinton, Soyinka confirmed carrying out his threat.

However, Trump lost reelection in 2020 and has since faced several legal issues, leading to his conviction on Thursday.

In reaction to Trump’s conviction in a statement on Thursday, Soyinka said: "Seeing that this trite, personal gesture attracted such inordinate attention at the time, let me answer the question before it is asked: Yes, I may choose to apply for restoration of my card of Permanent Residence, known as the Green Card. Possibly."

Soyinka went on to describe the verdict on Trump, as a "daybreak on a new democratic promise."

He said: "For millions in anguished parts of the world, certainly for us in vast swathes of the African continent, this is daybreak on a new democratic promise. The warning is clear. sooner or later, the clamour of equity breaks down the stoutest gates on guard across the citadel of impunity.

"The Trump debacle is a challenge also, a call to preparedness and steadfastness. Installed and putative fascisms – secular, military or theocratic – will extract from this only the wrong lessons, batten down and ‘crackdown’ in self-protection.

“It is 'not yet Uhuru', not anywhere close for humanity in our global village. Nonetheless, a celebration, albeit in a minor key, is justified.”