zeinab badawi speaks to one of the giants of african and world literature. welcome to hardtalk with me, zeinab badawi. he is one of the giants of african and world literature, and he s also a passionate advocate and campaignerfor human rights. my guest is the nobel literature laureate, nigerian professor wole soyinka. his country held a general election in february, which saw the incumbent muhammadu buhari re elected as president. does wole soyinka believe that nigeria is on the right path, and as africa s most populous nation, can it lead to the continent and make this a century of the africans? professor wole soyinka, welcome to hardtalk. thank you. has your generation of older nigerians failed the people? i believe so, yes. no question at all in my mind. really, no question? why? well, i compare today with the dreams, the aspirations we had when we all rushed home after our studies abroad. we considered ourselves the renaissance people, going to lift the continent to world
homes. he embraced all who had ever felt are the cold wind of exclusion, and they in turn also embraced him. he sought to emulate jesus christ, who embraced all those who society looked down upon and rejected. throughout his life, he became involved in causes both here at home and abroad. that went the very heart of the quest for social justice. through the desmond tutu hiv organization, he was involved in the treatment and care of people living with hiv and aids. in the provisions of health care services to adolescents and empowerment of young women. he was an outspoken supporter of the palestinian cause, and in 2014, he wrote a powerful article calling on the israelis and palestinians to find each other, and to make peace. in his words, peace requires the people of israel and palestine to recognize the human being in themselves and each other. and to understand their interdependence. he advocated for the lgbt-iq plus rights and decried all types of violence and discriminati
just over two weeks ago, christina found her grandmother, who lives in cheltenham spa, slumped in a chair, having a stroke. it was a blue light emergency. the ambulance should have arrived in 18 minutes. but instead, it took nearly six hours. it then queued outside hospital for an another three. it was then that an ambulance lady, i asked her how long it was going to take for my nan to get a ct, because ijust needed to know whether or not it was a stroke. and she told me, well, your nan s event happened last night. so we would only administer the medication that would reverse any permanent damage within that three hour window. how did you feel? ijust broke down in tears on the floor. whistle blowers from inside the ambulance services have told the bbc the system is at breaking point. this 999 call handler said even patients whose hearts have stopped are facing delays. there was a call for a cardiac arrest, and there was an eta in excess of 50 minutes. the nearest available cr
talk. welcome to hardtalk, i m zeinab badawi. my my guest is the deputy president of south africa, cyril ramaphosa. this is his first interview with the bbc since he became president of the ruling anc. he could also become president of south africa very soon, ifjacob president of south africa very soon, if jacob zuma heeds calls to resign early. but is cyril ramaphosa and anc stalwart and wealthy businessmen the right person to lead a new south africa, a country mired in corruption and cronyism 7 deputy president cyril ramaphosa, welcome to hardtalk. thank you very much. it is good to be here. how worried are you about corruption in south africa? deeply worried, because corruption tends to be a very negative action that is taken by corrupters against the nation. it impedes growth, it is something that takes away the resources that are meant to advance the lives of our people, and it puts it in the hands of a few, and it is a criminal act, and that is why i have been determine