Category: Socialist Democracy April-May 2012

Socialist Democracy April-May 2012 Edition NIGERIA’S GENERAL STRIKE/MASS PROTEST AGAINST FUEL PRICE HIKE: Vital Lessons For The Working Class And Youth By H.T. Soweto For 6 days running in January 2012, Nigeria was in the throes of a general strike against an over 120% increase of fuel price from N65 to well above N142 per litre. It was the biggest

N18,000 MINIMUM WAGE: AN UNFINISHED BATTLE By Kola Ibrahim In December 2008, the NLC and TUC formally demanded a minimum wage of N52, 200. The agitation lasted until last year when N18,000 was granted as the new minimum wage. At the beginning of this struggle, we in Democratic Socialist Movement (DSM) had proposed that the labour leadership must demand a

2012 BUDGET: Transforming The Economy And Living Condition Of The Working People From Bad To Worse! By Peluola Adewale President Goodluck Jonathan told the nation that his 2012 budget is a “stepping stone to the transformation of our economy and country in our walk to economic freedom.” The working people can only take this statement from the President as a

FUEL SUBSIDY SCANDAL PROBE: WILL IT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE By Lanre Arogundade When the House of Representatives ad-hoc committee probing the fuel subsidy scandal rounded off its public sittings recently, the committee’s chair Farouk Lawan boasted that “our recommendations will certainly bring about the running of a better oil industry in Nigeria. Some of the recommendations will have judicial implications.

MASS SACK IN BANKING SECTOR: Workers Must Struggle To Reclaim Their Unions and Fight Back By Chinedu Bosah Similar to Joseph interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams – a crisis period coming after a boom period and the need to prepare ahead – smaller and less viable banks have taken over more viable banks. Intercontinental Bank was taken over by Access Bank;

OYO WORKERS: Heroic Struggle for Minimum Wage In The Teeth Of Labour Leaders’ Treachery By Abbey Trotsky As we go to press, the strike of Oyo workers for the across-board implementation of the N18, 000 minimum wage has been suspended on Thursday April 5 2012, following the desire by the ACN-led State government to have another round of talks after

42% YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT: Build A Mass Movement To Fight For Jobs By H.T. Soweto One nightmare that is confronting youth in Nigeria is the challenge of getting a job. In a recent stunning revelation by the Minister of Youths and Social Development, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, 28.14 million youths in Nigeria are unemployed in a total population of 67 million youths.

DANGOTE PASTA: Victimised Workers Forced Union Leaders to Act The steadfastness of the victimized workers of Dangote pasta has finally forced the leadership of National Union of Food Beverages and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE) to wake up from their slumber. The union at a press conference on April 3, 2012 issued a 21 day ultimatum to the management of Dangote pasta

EDUCATION UNDERFUNDING: URGENT NEED FOR A FIGHT BACK By Keye Ewebiyi The pro-rich government of President Goodluck Jonathan has presented the 2012 budget to the National Assembly. As usual, a meagre sum of N499 billion representing 10 percent of the total budget was allocated to the education sector. While this is a slight improvement on the 2011 budgetary allocation to

LASU: Fee Hike Causes Drop in Admission By Keye Ewebiyi Last year, the Lagos State Government introduced a 725% hike in the tuition fees of Lagos State University. This is an increase up to between N193, 750 and N348, 750 as against the old fee of N25, 000. To fully impose this increment, the Students’ Union was banned for mobilizing

A Bill To Stop The Unions From Strike Action By Dagga Tolar Senator Heineken Lokpobiri of the PDP (Bayelsa West) has brought before the Senate a “Bill for an Act to further amend the Trade Union Act, Cap.T14 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 as amended 2005 to make provisions for balloting as a requirement before any action” or

OAU: Campaign For Union Restoration Continues By Odun, Secretary, DSM, OAU Branch Few weeks after resumption into a new academic session, student activists in Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) including members of the Democratic Socialist Movement (DSM) organized a bonfire/pubic rally on the evening of March 16 2012 to step up the campaign for the restoration of the banned students’ union.

MAY DAY: Workers’ Struggle Of The Past Year And The Tasks Ahead By Kola Ibrahim Since last May Day, fierce battle between public sector workers and the capitalist ruling class of different shades and disguises have erupted. These battles range from continuous struggle for a minimum wage to the unprecedented general strike/mass movements against hike of petrol pump price in

WORKERS AND POOR: WE NEED OUR OWN PARTY The real explanation for very limited success of this January’s massively supported anti-fuel price hike struggle and all the industrial disputes is that labour does not have a leadership to fight for political power. The infamous statement of the labour leadership that it is “not seeking a regime change” during the course

QUEST FOR WORKING CLASS POLITICAL PARTY: Mass Campaign Needed To Win Genuine and Democratic Electoral Process By Ayo Ademiluyi Most people will readily agree that Nigerian working masses need a political party of their own. This does not come as a surprise as none of the registered political parties (PDP, ACN, CPC, ANPP, APGA etc.) represent the true interest of