You go to conferences, and your fellow African intellectuals - and even heads of state - they all say: 'Nigeria is a big disappointment. It is the shame of the African continent.'

Don't take shadows too seriously. Reality is your only safety. Continue to reject illusion.

I never hesitated, as a student, in embracing the necessity of violence. In South Africa, I didn't just accept it; I looked forward to it as a mission.

As I grew older and more mature, I've been able to move beyond the immediate response of violence to a projection of the pragmatic, political consequences of that violence. So it's an effort to attain equilibrium.

Power is domination, control, and therefore a very selective form of truth which is a lie.

Mythology can be used, and has been used, even to re-state, you know, the very urgent problems of the world.

And I believe that the best learning process of any kind of craft is just to look at the work of others.