Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has revealed that he turned down an invitation by the United States embassy for a visa re-interview after the date given to him coincided with September 11, the anniversary of America’s worst terror attack.
Speaking at a media parley themed “Unending Saga: Idi Amin in Whiteface” held at Kongi’s Harvest Gallery, Freedom Park, Lagos, on Tuesday, Soyinka described himself as “superstitious”, saying he found it odd that such a sensitive date was chosen.
“I was invited for a visa re-interview, but the date fixed was September 11. I am a bit superstitious, and I found it strange that the embassy would choose that particular date,” Soyinka explained.
The playwright disclosed that the U.S. Consulate later revoked his visa, notifying him in a letter dated October 23, 2025. The correspondence stated that his non-immigrant visa was cancelled pursuant to Department of State Regulations 22 CFR 41.122.
The letter read in part, “Dear Mr. Soyinka, this letter serves as official notification that the non-immigrant visa listed below has been revoked pursuant to the Department of State Regulations 22 CFR 41.122 and is no longer valid for application into the United States. Additional information became available after the below visa was issued. This revocation refers only to the visa listed below.”
The Consulate also requested Soyinka to bring the visa to its Lagos office for “physical cancellation,” a request he described humorously. “I asked if anyone here would like to volunteer to deliver it for me,” he joked.
The letter further stated, “If you have plans to travel to the United States, you must apply again to re-establish your qualifications for a new non-immigrant visa.”
Soyinka told reporters that the parley was necessary to inform his contacts abroad that he had effectively been “banned” from the United States. His B1/B2 visa, issued on April 2, 2024, had now been nullified.
Speaking with journalists at the upper chamber of the art gallery, he said, “It is necessary for me to hold this press conference so that people in the United States who are expecting me for this event or that event do not waste their time. I have no visa; I am banned, obviously, from the United States. And if you want to see me, you know where to find me.”
Soyinka expressed surprise over the development, saying, “I’ve started looking back, have I ever misbehaved toward the United States of America? Do I have a history? Have I been convicted? Have I gone against the law anywhere?”
He, however, noted that the development would not affect his relationship with US citizens.
“I assured them that both he and his staff are given permanent visas anytime they want to visit the Autonomous Republic of Ijegba, situated in Abeokuta. There will be no reciprocal conduct from my principalities,” Soyinka said, making reference to a recent conversation he had with the US ambassador in Lagos over the revocation.
When asked whether he would be willing to travel to the United States in the near future, Soyinka responded affirmatively but ruled out the possibility of making the move to seek reinstatement of his visa.
According to him, given his age and contributions to the U.S., he owes the country nothing and vice versa.
He said, “How old am I now? What am I looking for anywhere? Like I said, I have nothing against the American citizens. Human beings live there, friends, families, and colleagues. There are a lot of art productions going on there, and there are philosophers. There are remarkable beings in that place.
“So, if circumstances change, yes (I will), and (if) I were invited. But I won’t make the effort myself. I won’t take the initiative myself because there is nothing I’m looking for there. I’ve been responsible for the creation of some institutions in that place. I’ve given as much as I’ve taken from that place. They owe me nothing, and I owe them nothing.”
On September 10, 2025, Soyinka told PM News that he would not honour an invitation by the U.S. Consulate in Nigeria for a visa re-interview, which was scheduled for Thursday, September 11.
In reference to the invitation on Tuesday, Soyinka said he did not honour it because, on the one hand, he had a problem with the date, and on the other hand, he was not interested.
He said, “I don’t know if any of you read the statement I made when I received a letter asking me to bring back my passport because certain facts may have come out since the visa was issued.
“And I was given a date to report to their consulate with my passport. I declined the invitation. First of all, I didn’t like the date. Everybody knows what happened on that date, 9/11, many years ago, so it is rather unfortunate that they picked that date. So I said, ‘Sorry, I’m superstitious; I’m not coming on that day.’ And ultimately, I made it clear I was not going to apply for another date to bring in my passport. So I travelled out.
“When I came back, even before I came back, I got a letter from the ambassador. I wish to always stress that I have absolutely nothing against individual citizens. I have a continuing good relationship with members of the U.S. embassy.
“So we arranged a call, and I explained. Again, he offered a special visit by me at the consulate, and they would ask a few questions about the possible facts that existed that they didn’t know about when this visa was issued. We spoke, and I said, ‘Shall I be equally frank with you? I’m not interested.”
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