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Nigerian
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Ibrahim Yusuf writes from Lagos In Nigeria, where the major sectors of the economy are dominated by multi-national companies, conditions for workers, students, unemployed and even the middle-class have taken a dive. The Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) introduced by General Babangida's military government in 1986 has cut living standards. Inflation is running officially at 50% and the costs of education, health and transport have risen sharply.
Urban workers' real wages fell by 50% between 1985 and 1988, while unemployment has reached four million. Death of women at child birth is 50,000 a year. The Psychiatric Association of Nigeria claim that millions suffer from mental disorder, that 33% of absence from work and 30% of all illnesses are due to psychiatric complaints.
The local Sunday Times commented (12 February 1989): "The SAP which was to be the economy's saviour and which entailed deregulation of the economy, liberalisation of trade, the trimming of government expenditure and the removal of subsidies especially on oil, brought in its wake massive retrenchment in public corporations and the civil service. Many private sector companies were also forced to reduce workers while others closed completely.' In education the result was that 'students often tear pages out of books in libraries because they cannot afford to photocopy them. They can't buy books, they can't eat well, they can't do assignments. It all leads to psychological stress.'
It was inevitable that students would act against the SAP. In May 1989 they led mass action against the Babangida government. Earlier in April 1988 they had sparked off a nation-
wide strike action by the trade unions against petrol price increases. Now they were on the move again.
The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), officially banned by the military reg ime in 1986 put a ten point ultimatum to Babangida, demanding the termination of the SAP. When the ultimatum expired there was a wave of protests. The Lagos College of Education and the State University started the movement which quickly spread to all parts of the country and to secondary and even primary school students as young as nine years old, many of whom were the most active.
Anger was fuelled by growing evidence of corruption in high places. Nigerian businessman, Alhaji Mohammed Bashir, who is being detained by the secret police, told a Lagos judge that he paid $500,000 into the private accounts of Vice Admiral Aikhomu in a deal concerning the Pan Ocean Oil Company. Aikhomu is Chief of the General Staff and the most important member of the government after Babangida.
The government was paralysed by the protests. Babangida's visit to France was hurriedly cancelled. Soldiers' movements in and out of barracks were curtailed amid rumours of a coup attempt by lower ranked officers.
If the leaders of the Nigerian Labour Congress had called then for a 24-hour general strike of the 42 industrial unions, linked to the demand for an end to the SAP and the introduction of a living minimum wage tied to the cost of living and socialist measures, they could have shifted the balance of forces decisively against the government.
Instead the NLC
by and watched as the nation
a few unions,
leaders stood boiled. Only
Babangida on his state visit to Britain.
Students led mass action against Babangid:
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including the Lagos state council of Public Corporation Employees whose leadership support Marxist ideas, backed the protests.
Consequently, the demonstrations began to drift into arson and looting, although the word on the lips of many demonstrators including disarmed soldiers and even policemen was Babangida must go.' But the rioting gave the regime the excuse to unleash mass repression Tanks, helicopters and troops were deployed to crush the protests and hundreds were shot dead and thousands wounded.
All political activity was suspended. Under government pressure, the NLC leaders stopped a symposium on "The Alternative to the SAP' from being held on NLC premises. The host of the seminar, radical lawyer, Gani Fawehinmi, was detained. Six universities who spearheaded the protests have now been closed for a year.
The key factor in the economic crisis is the dependence of the Nigerian economy on the advanced capitalist nations. The Nigerian economy is tied to the world market. The best period for the economy was between 1974-80 when there was a boom in the world capitalist economy and oil prices were high. Nigeria depends on oil for 90% of foreign exchange earnings. But from a peak of $26bn sales in 1980. oil revenue collapsed to $6.2bn in 1988. Much of this now goes to finance the $30bn foreign debt accumulated which sucks up 40% of Nigeria's export earnings. This debt rose by 130% between 1980-8.
This burden has made intended objectives of SAP to increase non-oil manufacturing capacity and export earnings and reduce the foreign debt just a dream. While manufacturing capacity utilisation rose from 38% of GDP to 41%, that was well short of the SAP target of 56%.
Faced with economic crisis and under the pressure of the working-class and all sections of the people, Babangida is trying to prevent the humiliation of the military. So he is pushed into a programme for civil rule and the return of the army to barracks, at least temporarily.
But while Babangida pledges a transition to 'democracy', his government has violated human rights to maintain power, in response to protests against the failure to satisfy the needs of the mass of people.
Last October strike action by the Electricity Staff Union was ruthlessly suppressed and 11 leaders were jailed for life by a military tribunal. Strikes, in effect, are now illegal. Organisations have been banned or dissolved and many individuals imprisoned, including Femi Aborisade, editor of the Marxist paper, Labour Militant.
But the repression has not deterred the working-class and youth from struggle. In 1988 over 230,000 man-days were lost in industrial disputes, a 143% increase over the previous year. Even the Nigerian Bar Association organised a
three day strike of 15,000 lawyers. while the trade union leaders have moved to the right to make an accommodation with the regime, the rank and file have taken action against it.
In May 1989 the setting-up of a Labour Party was officially proclaimed at a meeting of 10,000 workers. This is an historic step taken by the Nigerian working-class and presents a great opportunity to move in the direction of socialism, despite the refusal of the NLC leaders to adopt any mention of socialist measures.
Nearly all the other political parties are backing the government's SAP and the Labour Party could seize the initiative if it came out boldly against government austerity measures.
The government has organised the election rules to try and exclude any working-class based party. Only the armed forces can register any party which must pay a N50,000 deposit and register not less than 50,000 members with passport photos attached! Rallies and meetings cannot be held without police permits and successful candidates must obey the decisions of the armed forces until 1992 when there will be Presidential elections!
There is still the possibility that junior officers, disgusted with the regime, may carry out a coup and take measures against big business. But without the working-class coming to power what would be established would not be workers' democracy but a proletarian bonapartist dictatorship that rests on a nationalised economy. Coup or no coup the third republic is doomed. The approaching world recession and Nigeria's need to pay rescheduled foreign debts will have a catastrophic effect on the economy.
The experience that the workers will go through then will help them to draw the lesson that only the overthrow of capitalism and landlordism in Nigeria and its replacement by a workers' democracy and a planned socialist economy within a socialist federation of Africa can free the 100 million Nigerian people from poverty and need.
Femi Aborisade, former Education Officer of the Nigerian Labour Congress, and previously Editor of the Nigerian Marxist newspaper Labour Militant, has been held in detention by the Babangida government since 6 February 1989. He is being held under military decree No 2, which allows the military to hold for up to six months anyone they deem to be a 'threat to national security? The authorities have refused to state the nature of this so-called threat.
Femi is really being held because he published in Labour Militant articles critical of the government's arrest of the leaders of the bank workers union, and of government attempts to interfere in the internal affairs of other unions.
Protests should be sent urgently to the Nigerian High Commission, Nigeria House, 9 Northumberland Avenue, London WCZN 5BX.
Copies to NIDC, 42 Hemberton Rd, London
sw9.
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