Roots, Rivers & Responsibility: Niyi Osundare Speaks Truth To Power
Q: Your dressing is simple, like Soyinka, Achebe, and Ngugi. Why?
A: Simplicity defines me. Our mentors at the Mbari Club showed us that style need not be flashy. We promoted local fabrics like adire and batik. Clothes should bring comfort, not vanity. I prefer locally made products that reflect who we are.
Q: Did you play pranks as a child?
A: Never. My parents were strict—no smoking, no drinking. Discipline and reading defined me. At Amoye Grammar School, I excelled academically and became Library Prefect. My father valued hard work; my mother honesty. Those values shaped my life.
Q: Why didn’t you remain in Nigeria like some peers?
A: Achebe left only because of an accident. Soyinka, despite prison, returned and stayed. My case was different: we had a deaf child, and Nigeria lacked facilities for her. The University of New Orleans gave us refuge. But I carried Nigeria with me and still mentor students back home.
Q: Should intellectuals like you enter government?
A: I declined offers—from commissioner to ambassador—because I won’t serve juntas or be “hired on radio.” My calling is teaching and criticism, not political compromise. That’s my contribution to nation-building.
Q: Are today’s Yoruba politicians true Awoists?
A: Few are. Awolowo was a thinker, a man of ideas. He built with cocoa wealth, not oil money, and gave us free education. Today’s politicians wear his cap but not his brain. They pursue wealth, not nation-building.
Q: Why did you study English?
A: I loved Mass Communication but chose English at UI because Christ’s School gave me a bursary. I paired it with Sociology and Drama. That mix shaped my career.
Q: Who taught you at UI?
A: Mostly white lecturers, except Ayo Banjo, Dan Izevbaye, and Oyin Ogunba. They gave me the universe in the university.
Q: Why poetry?
A: It runs in my family—my father drummed and sang, my mentors encouraged me. Yoruba culture, festivals, and idioms also shaped me. Poetry chose me early, and I’ve followed its call since.
Q: Why your focus on ecology?
A: Growing up by the Osun River, farming with my father, and Yoruba respect for nature rooted me in it. Trees and rivers speak; we must listen. That’s why I mourn the destruction of UI’s Heritage Park. Nigeria’s rulers see green spaces as empty land to exploit. That mindset must change.
