You owe no apology to Muslims, Soyinka defends Davido

Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka has defended singer Davido, saying there was no need to apologise over a controversial video he recently shared which seemed to have disparaged the Muslim faith.

Davido had come under fire over the now-deleted video, with a number of prominent Muslim faithful frowning at the content of the clip.

Davido shared a video by another singer signed to his label, which reportedly showed men dancing outside a mosque. This caused outrage in some Muslim circles, with people tearing down Davido posters, local media report.

Davido has since deleted the video but 89-year-old Soyinka urged him not to apologise.”I have not seen the clip, but I insist on the right of the artiste to deploy dance in a religious setting as a fundamental given,” Soyinka said.

Several high-profile figures have condemned the video, including former lawmaker Shehu Sani, who tweeted that Davido should apologise because fans were “offended” by the video.

Bashir Ahmad, an adviser to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, wrote to his 1.6 million followers that the content was “absolutely disrespectful hurtful and offensive”.

“We Muslims don’t mix our religion with jokes in any way,” he wrote, especially anything to do with prayers.

Regarding the calls for an apology, Soyinka disagrees with Senator Shehu Sani and other aggrieved Muslims, stating that no apology is required, and none should be offered. He advises against resorting to contrived contrition and encourages society to focus on pursuing justice instead.

Soyinka also points out that Davido’s music is not responsible for the injustices and incidents of violence related to religious dissent in society. He highlights the lynching of Deborah Samuel Yakubu and the imprisonment of atheists like Mubarak Bala as real issues that should provoke collective anger and action.

In conclusion, Soyinka defends the artist’s right to artistic expression and urges those offended to boycott Davido’s products peacefully, rather than resorting to negativity and incitement.

The video in question featured men dressed as praying mallams dancing in front of a mosque as part of the promotion for Logos Olori’s new song, ‘Jaye Lo.’ This sparked controversy, with some Muslims demanding an apology from Davido.