Glorious Day of Rage

Never before has Nigeria witnessed such a massive display of people’s power on the streets. On July 5, 1993, one million people had marched on the streets of Lagos to MKO Abiola’s house in a procession which we had all though would be a huge success if we could have brought ten thousand people out to claim the streets, when mobilizing. But, yesterday, more people marched on the streets of Lagos than the number that had marched on July 3, 1993! The same goes for Ibadan. And across the country, in virtually every major city except those in states in the North East which have been militarized under state of emergency, millions of Nigerians altogether took charge of the avenues, roads, streets and neighbourhoods. But even in those states, the NLC & TUC state councils constituted Strike Monitoring Committees, which went around the cities in buses to ensure, or more aptly put as it turned out, observe, the strict compliance that the strike achieved.

As the people marched on the streets, the country’s economy was ground to a halt. Factories, banks and offices were shut down. Shops and the plethora of informal services outlets in the country were closed. Workers’ power was self-evident as being decisive for social change and genuine transformation in Nigeria, not just because of the quantitative size of the barely 7million organised workers that are members of the affiliates of NLC and TUC, added up. The strategic position of the working class within any modern economy, including a backward one like Nigeria’s in the global modern industrial system, can definitely not be overemphasized.

The fact that the trade union movement is the only pan-Nigerian democratically structured social force, cutting across creed and ethnic identity is also very important. But probably the most important reason why the working class in Nigeria and indeed generally is the most decisive element of we are to realize in deed, the possibility of another Nigeria and indeed another world as the social forum process rightly asserts, is because of the leadership which with its intrinsic nature and its ties with all other segments of the 99% marginalised and dominated by capitalism in some form or the other, it can bring to bear in our rising to reclaim our humanity and build a new world based on cooperative solidarity. This is what we have seen as revolutionary upsurge builds in Nigerian revolution.

The ruling class of course will not just fold its hands in a situation like that which is now unfolding. The ancien regime always vacillates between the use of the carrot and the stick in the hour of its twilight. Yesterday, even as the Senate on behalf of the ruling class as a whole sought to win organised labour to some form of compromise, before its session today Nigerians were killed in cold blood with guns and bullets bought with tax payers’ money in several cities including Lagos, Kano, Gusau and Asaba. The perpetrators in Lagos were identified by vigilant citizens who took the vehicle number of the police van which the bloodthirsty purveyors of violence came in, and broadcast this widely, using social networking media. To quell the people’s anger, armed with this information, Mr Raji Fashola the Lagos State governor ordered the arrest of the policemen involved. We must also unmask the killers of our brothers and sisters in every other city. This calls for vigilance as demonstrated by the citizens at Ogba, Lagos state. We salute these martyrs whose labour, with their blood, shall never be in vain and must continue to demand with our words and deeds that it is our right to protest and the state must halt the killing of protesters. We call on all well-meaning persons and organisations across the world to echo this cry, as every life lost fills us with pain.

Violence against protesters also included the use of tear gas and pepper spray. An example of this was at Ibadan, when the mammoth crowd of a million people marched on the seat of the state government house, this resulted in the hospitalization of a 1-year old child, who happily for us, is now okay. The state governor sent the Commissioner of Establishment and Labour to express the state government’s regrets. The protesters who, as it might soon become generalised, demanded that Jonathan Must Go and a Sovereign National Conference be summoned by the people, made it clear that this was not enough. They insisted that the governor himself come and express the government’s apologies if sincere about it.

It was not only in the streets that the carrot and stick were used by the ruling class, who employ labour. The Ogun State Television (OGTV) General Manager asked the workers who had been on the night shift to stay back as it was clear that those on morning shift would not be coming to work. He offered the carrot of overtime allowance which they rejected; he then invoked the carrot of an order, effectively making them work, as forced labour for the duration of the day. The 7Up bottling company did a similar thing, while at Dangote Cement Obajana, management issued an order that any employee who does not report to work today would be sacked. The NLC/TUC National Strike Mobilization Committee and Leadership are aware of these and taken necessary action, with the state councils directed to mount massive pickets at these few recalcitrant workplaces in the course of today’s street protests.

In Abuja, the state cordoned off the Eagle Square which was where the processional rally led by Comrades Abdulwahed Omar and Peter Esele, Presidents of the NLC & TUC respectively was to have ended. Blockades also littered the procession’s route. After overwhelming two of these with people’s power, it was considered expedient to change the end point to avoid possible mayhem. While the rally and procession were peaceful, it kept swelling as it was moving and the virulent anger of many people, which is quite legitimate, was very palpable. With the state’s siege at Eagle Square, a single incident could have sparked bitter confrontation that might not only be diversionary and thus be in the interest of the state, but that could equally have led to shootings and possibly death. The procession’s final rally thus held at Wuse II in the commercial heart of the city, which was devoid of any commercial activity.

Across the country, we have not and will not take the bait of their carrots, nor will we succumb to their sticks. The time has come upon us, and we, Nigerian people are rising up to the call of history. The enthusiasm is high and today promises to be even much more massive on the streets than yesterday. Indeed, the time has come for change in Nigeria and the masses are not equating change to a mere reversal of fuel pump price. The change we seek, which we fight for and which we shall win, is that of the system. We want to and shall build a new Nigeria. As the flames of rage sweep through our land, the 99%’s anger like never before rises across the world. Revolution from below is international and together we shall build a new world with working people across the globe.

Venceremos! We Will WIN!

Baba Aye, a Deputy National Secretary of Labour Party is National Chairperson of the Socialist Workers League.