IMPUNITY AS THE BANE OF CONTEMPORARY NIGERIA SOCIAL-POLITICAL DEVELOPMENT: AN EXAMINATION OF NIYI OSUNDARE’S The State Visit

Abstract

The traditional role of an African writer is that he is the conscience of his society. He should serve as the record of the mores and experiences of his society and the voice of vision in his own time. Niyi Osundare has demonstrated his awareness of these in his play The State Visit. He x-rays how the leadership of Yakeland rules the state with impunity sacking his ministers and aides; diverting resources meant for the development of agriculture and ignoring the vulnerable in the society. The paper, apart from dilating on all these, looks at Osundare in his bid to sensitize the proletariat and the poor against the exploitation of the military. This is reflected in his attitude to those big social and political issues relating to how the president of Yakeland governs his country. We also look at his attitude and world view in his work with which he is persuading us to identify and take action