My wife will be Soyinka, Chinua Achebe of Northern Nigeria – El-Rufai

Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufa has said his wife Hadiza Isma el-Rufai, will become the Wole Soyinka and Chinua Achebe of northern Nigeria.

El-rufai disclosed this at the launch of her book “An abundance of scorpion” on Thursday at the Yar’Adua Center in Abuja.

The book highlights and clarifies some of the issues confronting women in the north.

In his speech, he advised young Nigerian writers to have a mentor

El-Rufai said “She’ll be the female Chinua Achebe and Wole Soyinka combined from the northern Nigeria.

“I am proud of her. I am very happy for her because this is something she has always wanted to do a long time in her life.

“Today, with the presentation of the book, she has finally achieved one of her dreams. I have always encouraged her to be the best she can be.

“The young, upcoming writers should pursue their dreams. I think if you want to write, start, you should keep practising and try to get someone to mentor you.

“I don’t write very well. So, I am not the best person to give that advice but seeing how my wife has gone through it, I think it is possible.

“Just keep at it and remain focused, and the sky is the limit.”

Tony Elumelu, chairman of United Bank for Africa (UBA), donated N10 million to launch the book.