Rotimi Agboluaje, Ibadan.
Known for their agitations and socialist political leaning, some labor activists from far and wide gathered in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, to reiterate their demand for improved welfare packages for the working class and called for a political change.
Organized by Socialist Workers’ League, the program gave ample opportunities to workers and labor leaders to pour out their minds on the state of the economy and the plight of Nigerian workers.
The symposium, which took place at the Federal Secretariat, Ikolaba, Ibadan, had a theme: “Survival of the Nigerian Workers in the Face of Recession”.
Though the Labor Day comes up May 1,the labor leaders emphasized that it was imperative to hold a Pre-May Day Symposium to sensitize Nigerian workers on the need to give more momentum to labor movement and importantly to ‘rework so many things’.
Firing the first shot, the immediate past chairman of Trade Union Congress (TUC), Oyo State Council and state chairman of Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, Comrade Andrew Emelieze, many things need to be reworked in the country. Lamenting that Nigerian workers had been on a monthly N18,000 minimum wage, he canvassed for a socialist alternative, in the view the what he described as the capitalist parties had failed Nigerians and workers.
He said: “There must be a socialist alternative. Capitalist parties and the ruling class have failed us. We’re demanding socialist government. We want workers’ parties. They deliberately plunged us into recession. Workers are bearing the brunt of recession. We can’t continue with this. It’s affecting productivity, workers are therefore demanding change”.
The unionist emphasized that, “if by May 1,2017 the Federal Government refuses to pronounce a new minimum wage (living wage) we’re going on strike”.
He added that Nigerians were depressed, saying that was why many are committing avoidable suicides.
Emelieze maintained that President Muhammadu Buhari and All Progressives Congress (APC) have failed, saying that is why the government is being sustained with lies.
On his part, the Oyo State Council Chairman of Trade Union Congress (TUC),Emmanuel Ogundiran, lamented that Nigerian workers had been in depression before the country went on recession.
In a lecture, Comrade Adekunle Ajayi of Socialist Youth League, regretted that a lot of workers died as a result of hunger and poverty while children of the rich held expensive weddings.
Ajayi said recession is for the poor and workers, lamenting that workers are paying for it. Citing the example of Osun State where workers had been receiving 50 per cent of their salaries for more than a year, Ajayi remarked that the ruling class is imposing austerity on Nigerians.
He said: “ The APC introduced its hardship cleverly like rodents while the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) used force to achieved the same purpose. The ruling class wanted the recession to continue. APC and PDP are anti-poor and anti-working class”.
Supporting his assertion with facts, Ajayi said Lagos, which is the richest APC-controlled state has not subsidized any sector of the economy while Governor Ayo Fayose of PDP has collected fees from public primary and secondary schools students.
Continuing, the lecturer said judging by information emanating from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and other sources it was clear that the ruling class is starving the country. He cited the Secretary to the Government of Federation( Babachir Lawal’s) corruption saga.
According to the activist, “this government is wasteful. There is a systematic way of stealing”.
The labor activist urged labor leaders to use the moment to strike when the iron is hot.
“Working class needs to unite to fight these vices and ills. We need an alternative. We have a capitalist party that talks about growth, not development” he said while calling on Nigerians and workers to defeat the enemies at homes who are pursuing International Monetary Funds agenda.
He described the public-private-partnership (PPP) concept as the modern day Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP), aying it connoted financing a venture with public funds while its benefits would go to private purses of the rich and ruling class
He concluded by saying that, “we need a revolution of the working people of Nigeria”.
Earlier, the national chairman of Socialist Workers’ League, Comrade Akinjole Frances said workers were contributors to the collective treasury, hence a day is set aside for their liberation and emancipation.
