‘I Knew Trump Would Cancel US Green Cards’ – Wole Soyinka

Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has disclosed that he predicted a mass revocation of visas and green cards by the United States government under President Donald Trump.

In an interview published by BBC News Pidgin on Facebook on Wednesday, the world-acclaimed writer, whose visa was recently revoked by the US government, said he knew that once Donald Trump assumed the presidency, “the first thing he will do is cancel even the green cards.”

Soyinka described Trump as “a petty-minded dictator” and reflected on the darker aspects of American politics during Trump’s rise.

“We saw that dark side of the American side. There were more killings, extrajudicial killings by the police of black people, of minorities, during that build-up, during the campaign, and on account of hate rhetoric, the hate rhetoric of this individual. I saw it and I said, listen very carefully — and you can go and check this — I said, ‘When that man comes to power, the first thing he will do is cancel even the green cards.’”

Soyinka’s comments came amid heightened diplomatic tension between Nigeria and the US after Trump recently designated Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern,” citing alleged Christian genocide in the country.

In a series of X posts, Trump also warned that if the Nigerian government failed to halt the killings, the US could intervene militarily, entering Nigeria “gun-ablazing,” a remark that generated widespread concern both locally and internationally.

A vocal critic of Trump, Soyinka had threatened ahead of Trump’s first inauguration to tear up his Green Card once Trump was sworn in, a threat he has since carried out.

“I have already done it, I have disengaged (from the United States). I have done what I said I would do,” Soyinka, then 82, told AFP on the sidelines of an education conference at the University of Johannesburg.

He added, “I had a horror of what is to come with Trump. I threw away the (green) card, and I have relocated, and I’m back to where I have always been” — meaning his homeland, Nigeria.

In July this year, the US Department of State updated its non-immigrant visa policy for Nigerian citizens. According to a press release issued by the US Embassy in Abuja, “most non-immigrant and non-diplomatic visas issued to citizens of Nigeria will be single-entry visas with a three-month validity period.”

Soyinka disclosed the revocation of his B1/B2 visa during a media briefing in Lagos last Tuesday. The US Consulate communicated the revocation in a letter dated October 23, 2025, also requesting Soyinka to bring the visa to the Lagos Embassy “for physical cancellation,” which the Nobel laureate described as “a joke.”

The letter added, “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.”

While Soyinka said he did not know the reason for the revocation, the US Mission in Nigeria clarified last Thursday that visas are a privilege, not a right.

Its spokesperson said, “Every country, including the United States, can determine who enters its borders. Visas may be revoked at any time, at the discretion of the U.S. government, whenever circumstances warrant.”

In the BBC interview, Soyinka reiterated that he would never reapply for a US visa, explaining that he had left the country to avoid being “kicked out.” “I said I’m not going to wait to be told to come for a reinterview or simply told, ‘Get out! The green card is cancelled!’ That’s all. People failed to understand. Even though I said it, people failed to accept it. I said I don’t like to be kicked out; I like to kick myself out, it’s more dignified,” the 91-year-old playwright said.

He also recounted receiving a letter from the US Internal Revenue Service notifying him of a tax audit shortly after Trump took office. “After he took office, I got a letter from the IRS telling me to report for an audit. The coincidence for me was very impressive,” he said. Soyinka clarified that audits are routine and that he had no issue with the process, noting that he simply wanted to resolve it without being unfairly portrayed as a tax dodger.

Soyinka emphasised that he does not hold personal grievances against members of the US Embassy or the American people, acknowledging that he was always treated with courtesy during his visits.