Tomorrow, Thursday, October 9, an indefinite general strike is scheduled to
start in Nigeria. The reason for the announced strike is another increase in the
price of fuel, which follows on from last June's increase which provoked an
8-day general strike. The country is now bracing itself for a major
confrontation between the classes. What is being prepared is a colossal clash
between the mass of working people and the privileged few who sit at the top.
Yesterday's announced general strike was called off as the Obasanjo regime
was forced to give in to the demands of the trade unions. The mere threat of a
strike has been enough to gain victory. This now poses a dilemma before the
ruling elite in Nigeria: how to govern the country in the face of such a
militant and organised working class?
Since Obasanjo came to power in 1999, the regime has been trying
to portray a picture of itself as “modernising”, anti-corruption and
generally a new type of regime based on rectitude and respect for democratic
principles. In reality beneath this façade lies the same old corrupt, despotic
ruling class. This is the case of the Vice-Chancellor of the University of
Ilorin, who two years ago sacked more than sixty lecturers. In Nigeria this question has made front page
headlines and is still attracting a lot of attention. Our correspondent in
Ilorin interviewed the chairman of the Ilroin branch of the Academic Staff Union
of Universities (ASUU).
The Nigerian ruling class is famous for its levels of corruption and
incompetence. What is even more striking is the way it was created. The irony of
the situation in Nigeria is that the working class came into being long before
the “ruling class”. This was due to the colonial domination on the part of
British imperialism. Here a Nigerian Marxist looks at this apparent
contradiction.
The Nigerian Labour Congress (the main trade union federation in Nigeria) has
been under pressure to launch its own party. The leaders of the NLC have
unfortunately always run after the coat-tails of Obasanjo's PDP. Earlier this
year some elements within the NLC did indeed launch a party, the PSD (Party for
Social Democracy). But they did so without really doing anything to seriously
publicise the party and take it to the workers. The NLC was not seen to be
officially backing it. This led to its disastrous electoral results earlier this
year. Here we publish an article from the Workers' Alternative on the party's
programme.