Occupy Nigeria Rally Day 5: Protests Continue Monday If FG, Labour Talks Fail

Gani Fawehinmi Park has remained packed with protesters, who have promised to continue the demonstration if FG and Labour talks fail. PHOTO: IDOWU OGUNLEYE.

Gani Fawehinmi Park has remained packed with protesters, who have promised to continue the demonstration if FG and Labour talks fail. PHOTO: IDOWU OGUNLEYE.

The nationwide protests against the fuel price hike announced by the Federal Government on 1 January will continue on Monday if the talks between labour leaders and the Federal Government scheduled to continue on Saturday fail to yield any positive result.

Gani Fawehinmi Park has remained packed with protesters, who have promised to continue the demonstration if FG and Labour talks fail. PHOTO: IDOWU OGUNLEYE.

Organisers of the protest in Lagos made this known today at the Gani Fawehinmi Memorial Park in Ojota, Lagos.

Speaking to P.M.NEWS, Founder, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, CACOL, Comrade Debo Adeniran, said the protest will break up today to enable those participating to have some rest during the weekend after being actively involved in the protest since Monday.

He added that activists and the protesters will again converge on the park on Monday, 16 January if the Federal Government fail to revert the pump price of petrol to N65 per litre.

The protests entered its fifth day today as the Federal Government and labour failed reach an agreement on how to resolve the crisis.

The meeting between 17 labour leaders, the Federal Government and the Governors’ Forum in Aso Rock ended in a deadlock last night.

The meeting was held to resolve the crisis surrounding the removal of petrol subsidy which has precipitated crippling nationwide protests for the fifth day running.

Before the meeting, expectations were high that the Federal Government will revert to N65 per litre of petrol from the N141 it was jacked up to after the subsidy was removed. That was not to be as no compromise was reached during the meeting. The Federal Government and the organised labour agreed to continue negotiations on Saturday.

The Nigeria Labour Congress President, Abdulwaheed Omar who led the NLC said the strike continues today, 13 January.

The Centre for human Rights Enlightenment and Conflict Mediation has expressed its support for the nationwide strike

In a statement issued and signed by the national chairman, Comrade Akpan S. Mark, and the secretary, Comrade Edward Owolabi, the group said the Federal Government should revert to N65 per litre price of petrol or it should be ready to face persistent strike from the people.

As the protests continued here in Lagos, the Convener of Save Nigeria Group, SNG, and the Senior Pastor of the Latter Rain Assembly, Akilo Road, Ogba, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria, Pastor Tunde Bakare, celebrities including Nollywood stars, top musicians and civil society groups, have been galvanising thousands of protesters since Monday at the Gani Fawehinmi Memorial Park in Ojota, Lagos.

Musicians have also been entertaing the protesters there and singing protest songs against the government.

In other cities across the country, the number of protesters that have poured into the streets has continued to increase daily.

However, street urchins popularly known as area boys this morning gathered at Ahmadiya bus stop on Lagos-Abeokuta expressway extorting money from motorcyclists and the few motorists on the road. They were collecting between N100 and N200 from road users.

When some helpless passers-by raised the alarm, the police from a nearby police station threw tear gas at the area boys and dispersed them. A few minutes after the policemen left, the hoodlums continued with their extortion.

In different parts of Lagos like ‘T’ junctions and streets in Agbotikuyo area of Agege the area boys commenced their operation as early as 7 a.m. today. Motorists passing through streets in Ojodu, Omole Junction and Ogba were also harassed by the hoodlums who barricaded the roads and extorted money from the motorists.In Isolo-Ago Okota axis of Lagos, the former headquarters the Oodua People’s Congress, OPC, was in turmoil this as OPC boys barricaded roads leading to Ago-Okota.

A source told P.M.NEWS that the OPC militants took over the road in reaction to a speculation that many people in the area have disregarded the ongoing nationwide strike in agitation against fuel price hike.

Therefore, some OPC members, area boys and officials of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, blocked the road to prevent okada and three-wheeler operators from operating.

All road users except doctors on essential duties and journalists were allowed passage.

The policemen from Okota police division later dismantled the road blocks and restored normalcy in the area.

As at press time, a few people on the streets moved about freely but okada, three-wheelers and vehicles have withdrawn from the roads.

In other cities across the country, there have been reports of violence as hoodlums blocked the highways and extorted money from travellers. Following speculations in newspapers that the Federal Government may slash the price of fuel from N141 to N100, human rights activists have rejected the proposal , saying it is N65 or nothing.

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Speaking with P.M.NEWS this morning, activist, Bamidele Aturu, said N100 is not acceptable to Nigerians, adding that the government must revert to N65.

“It is not acceptable. We did not embark on the strike for N100. They must revert to N65 before we think of negotiating further. We are also asking that they should cut their expenses.

“We are asking that no minister should travel out in the next three years. This strike is not for labour alone but for everybody,” he said.

Constitutional lawyer, Prof. Itse Sagay, said N100 is not acceptable, adding that the whole idea of the strike was for the Federal Government to revert to N65.

“It is not acceptable. We are negotiating a reversal to N65,” he stated.

According to Alhaji Balarabe Musa, Chairman, Peoples Redemption Party, PRP, the reason the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, went on strike was to demand reversal to N65, saying that N100 is not acceptable.

Founder, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, CACOL, Comrade Debo Adeniran, said pegging the price at N100 would not be acceptable.

“We will not accept N100. We believe that even the N65 it was before was not still acceptable. For anybody to accept it is fraudulent. We are likely to continue the agitation if labour accepts N100,” he said.

According to him, nothing had come out so far from the deregulation of diesel and that nothing would come out from this deregulation and it should therefore be resisted.

Former President, Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Oluwatosin Akeredolu said the N100 might be part of negotiation, but “let us wait until negotiation is completed.”

Afenifere leader, Reuben Fasoranti, said the N100 is still speculation but “it is unacceptable. It can still come down a bit. It can be within the range of N80 and N90.”

According to Save Nigeria Group, SNG scribe, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, N100 is not acceptable, saying; “it is N65 or nothing. That is what the people want.” National President, Campaign for Democracy, CD, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, said N100 for fuel is never acceptable.

“No, never, we will not accept N100. We have said it before that N65 is acceptable. Labour and TUC have agreed on N65. It will be callous for us to pay for their inefficiency we have suffered; it is not acceptable to us. We will continue the struggle,” he said.

Mr. Joe Igbokwe, Publicity Secretary, Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Lagos State Chapter said “the crisis is all about money and this country is more important than money. After all, Nigerians need to be alive to enjoy the oil subsidy money.

“The protest is gradually sliding into a dangerous dimension and only wisdom and common sense must prevail now. N120, N100 or N65 does not matter to me now except how to recover Nigeria.

“Nigerian leaders may not see a revolution coming but I see it coming with very high speed. Labour and the Federal Government must remove the kid gloves to save Nigeria now. The revolution I am seeing looks like a violent one and most Nigerian leaders may not survive it.”

According to him, “the anger I have seen on the streets since Monday tells me that this is accumulated anger that stemmed from bad leadership, wasted opportunities, rigging of elections, political irresponsibility, assassinations, impunity on the part of the ruling party and 13 years of looting Nigeria by the PDP.”

Meanwhile, the Lagos State economy has lost a whopping N100 billion in five days to the ongoing strike which has continued to take its toll on the economy generally.

Lagos Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Tokunbo Abiru, disclosed that what the state has lost to the strike is calculated in terms of the Gross Domestic Product, GDP, which is put at N30 trillion annually for the whole nation.

He said that out of this figure, Lagos State economy accounts for 25 percent of the nation’s GDP, which is about N7.5 trillion annually and that when calculated on a daily basis, it will amount to N20 billion.

With Lagos State economy worth N20 billion daily, the loss for the five days strike by labour and the masses is put at N100 billion.

—Kazeem Ugbodaga, Eromosele Ebhomele & Dedeigbo Ayodeji

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