Action needed to free Abiodun Bamigboye!
UPDATE 9:23pm 23 May 2019
The arrested comrades, Abbey and Arowosegbe are at Zone 2 police command in Osogbo, Osun state. We had comrades and lawyers waiting for them, and eventually they will be released on bail into the care of Alfred Adegoke, a DSM comrade and lawyer living in Osogbo who was the SPN’s candidate in last September’s Osun state governorship election.
However also it is not over. Next Monday the comrades have to report back again to the Zone 2 police command in Osogbo.
It is clear that the AIG had a rough day with many phone calls and messages.
Many thanks to all the comrades who took action.
In addition to the phone numbers of police authorities, these are the e-mail and numbers of Authorities of Sumal Foods Limited, Plot 2A, Block J, Oluyole Industrial Estate. Ring Road, Ibadan, Nigeria. (Their website is http://sumalfoods.com)
Send E-mails, text or call them to oppose the arrest Abiodun Bamigboye (Abbey Trotsky) and Azeez Arowosegbe
Email: [email protected]
Tel +234 70-57728249, +234 81-33802232, +234 8085297635, + 234 8150987226, + 234 8113985454, + 234 8113985453.
We will keep comrades informed of developments.
Comradely
DSM Nigeria
#FreeAbbeyTrotsky
Original post:
Abiodun Bamigboye, aka Abbey Trotsky, has been rearrested and transferred to Nigeria Police Zone 2 Command in Osogbo. This time he was arrested together with Arowosegbe Azeez, a former worker of Summal Food Limited, a Ibadan, Oyo state, factory.
Abbey had reported today (Thursday, May 23) at the Oyo State Criminal Investigation Department, Iyangaku, where he met a Deputy Commissioner of Police who asked him and Azeez to report back on Thursday. They were still in the premises of the police department when the signal came from Zone 2 that they should be transferred to Osogbo, Osun state, the South West regional office of the Police CID. There is high possibility they may be arraigned in court tomorrow, Friday.
Recall that Abbey Trotsky had been invited for interrogation on Tuesday and was briefly detained. The allegations against him were that he was inciting workers of Summal factory to organise and defend their rights to better pay and work conditions. Also during the recent election, posters of comrade Abbey Trotsky, who was the Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) governorship candidate in Oyo state were posted in the factory. This also was put up as part of the allegations. Although if arraigned, the allegations at the court could be framed differently, but these are the political basis for the arrest.
Clearly these arrests are linked to the work of the Campaign for Democratic and Workers Rights (CDWR) in the struggle of casual workers at Summal Food. Abbey is also the Oyo State Coordinator of the CDWR – the pro-labour platform of the DSM.
The struggle of these workers broke out in October 2018 over poor pay and conditions, and Abbey together with other DSM comrades gave crucial solidarity support which helped win some concessions.
It should be recalled that this is second time Abbey has been arrested by security operatives over the Summal workers’ struggle. He was similarly arrested and detained by the Department of State Service (DSS), Nigeria’s national secret police, on January 21 in Ibadan.
Clearly the management of Summal having not been able to have their way in Oyo State Police Command, apparently due to pressure of protest actions, took the case to the higher police Command. Pole Zone 2 covers most of south western Nigeria, a huge region.
This means that Abbey’s arrest can have a wider significance as part of an attempt to repress workers’ and left activity. Coming after the widespread ballot rigging and voter bribery that was seen in this year’s general election, it could make a further step in an attempt to repress opposition.
We call on all to begin another round of protest actions in form of protest sms/text messages and calls to
Assistant Inspector General of Police Zone 2
AIG Leye Oyebade: +234 802 343 1079; +234 803 301 4905
For more on this see post on 21/5/2019 on CWI website: