The United States Embassy in Lagos has clarified that visas issued by the country are a privilege, not a right, in response to the recent revocation of Nobel laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka’s visa.
In an email to The PUNCH on Thursday, Julia McKay, Public Diplomacy Officer at the U.S. Consulate General in Lagos, said the Consulate could not discuss individual visa cases due to confidentiality laws.
“Under US law, visa records are generally confidential. We will not discuss the details of this individual visa case,” McKay stated.
She further explained that visas may be revoked at any time at the discretion of the U.S. government.
“Visas are a privilege, not a right. Every country, including the United States, has the authority to determine who enters its borders,” she said.
Soyinka revealed on Tuesday during a media briefing in Lagos, themed “Unending Saga: Idi Amin in Whiteface,” that his B1/B2 visa had been revoked.
The 91-year-old Nobel Prize-winning playwright said the US Consulate General informed him of the decision in a letter dated October 23, 2025.
“I have no visa; I am banned, obviously, from the United States. If you want to see me, you know where to find me,” Soyinka told journalists at Freedom Park, Lagos.
The letter from the Consulate stated that the visa was revoked under 22 CFR 41.122 of the U.S. Department of State regulations, citing new information that became available after issuance. The Embassy requested that Soyinka return the visa for “physical cancellation.”
The author, known for his criticism of former U.S. President Donald Trump, said he was unsure why his visa was withdrawn.
Reflecting on past experiences, he recalled two minor incidents in the US decades ago once being fined at an airport in Chicago for failing to declare chili peppers, and another confrontation with police at a conference in Atlanta during the 1970s.
“These are the only two crimes I can consider myself guilty of in all the decades I’ve been going to the United States,” he said, adding that he doubted either incident was related to the recent revocation.
Soyinka’s visa was issued on April 2, 2024, in Lagos. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986 and has held academic positions at several US universities.
The development has reignited discussions about recent US immigration policies and restrictions affecting African visitors.
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