Democratic Socialist Movement

For Struggle, Solidarity and Socialism in Nigeria

By - DSM

SUMAL WORKERS’ PROTEST: CDWR CONDEMNS KILLING AND BRUTALIZATION OF WORKERS AND DEMANDS IMMEDIATE PROSECUTION OF POLICE OFFICERS INVOLVED

WE CALL FOR A DEMOCRATIC PANEL OF ENQUIRY AND IMMEDIATE INTERVENTION OF NLC AND TUC TO ENSURE THAT WORKERS’ DEMANDS ARE ACCEDED TO WITH ADEQUATE COMPENSATION FOR THE DECEASED AND INJURED

The Campaign for Democratic and Workers’ Rights (CDWR), condemns the reported killing of one Mr Bode, a staff of SUMAL FOOD LIMITED, and brutalization of many other workers from the company by the police obviously invited by the company to repress a workers’ protest. The workers had on Monday, July 1st, 2024, embarked on a peaceful action to protest the company’s refusal to heed to the alleged FGN’s directive over palliatives.

We demand justice and adequate compensation for the families of the dead. The injured workers should be medically treated at the expense of the company and be adequately compensated. We also call for the arrest and prosecution of the police officers involved in the killing and brutalization of the workers.

The management of Sumal has reportedly justified the deployment of the police stating that it was necessitated by the protest turning into violence. This is a blatant lie! The fact is that the company’s management, in a bid to protect its super profits, has the history of relying on the instrumentality of the state (police, judiciary, DSS and Ministry of Labour) to intimidate, harass and persecute workers and activists who openly oppose the company anti-labour practices like casualization or demand better pay and decent working conditions

It will be recalled that comrade Abiodun Bamigboye, aka Abbey Trotsky, a socialist activist and Oyo state coordinator of the CDWR, was a victim of a string of persecution, harassment and attacks at the hands of the police and DSS at the instance of the management of Sumal Foods, sadly, in collaboration with leaders of the Food union (NUFBTE). This was because of the support and solidarity he and other members of the CDWR gave to the struggle of Sumal workers against poor pay and working conditions that broke out on October 2nd, 2018.

Comrade  Bamigboye has since June 7, 2019, when he was first arraigned at the Oyo State Magistrate Court, Iyaganku division, been standing trial on four-count trumped-up charges. This was after he had been arrested and detained seven different times by the police and DSS. Again, the fact that police vans are usually stationed at the entrance of each of the nine Sumal production centres further faults the claim that the so-called violent turn of the protest was the reason for the invitation of the police and other security operatives.

It is on this basis that we demand the immediate withdrawal of police vans and officers attached to Sumal Foods limited and many other private companies across the Oyo state and Nigeria at large. Also importantly, we call for a democratic panel of enquiry that will include representatives of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Academic Staff of Universities Union (ASUU) and civil society organizations for an open and transparent investigation of several claims and narratives associated with the July 1st Sumal workers’ protest.

We strongly believe that the circumstances surrounding the killing and brutalization of protesting workers including the claim that Federal Government has since last year granted the organised private sector a tax waiver with a directive that the money thus saved is used to provide palliatives to their employees deserve is to be given a thorough investigation. It is in the light of this we call for an immediate intervention of state leaderships of both the NLC and TUC with a view to ensure that all of the workers arrested and currently in detention are released and concerns of the generality of workers in the company including several cases of anti-workers and indecent labour practices are adequately investigated and addressed.

The state leaderships of NLC and TUC should also demand immediate withdrawal of all of the trumped-up charges against Comrade Abiodun Bamigboye with a commitment to commence a serious campaign against casualization and other indecent labour practices across the state.

Rufus Olusesan

National Chairperson

Chinedu Bosah

National Publicity Secretary

CDWR email: [email protected]