IT was a rare disagreement between the labour movement and a former labour leader and frontline politician.
Adams Oshiomhole, former Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President, and the congress, the parent body of all pro-workers’ unions, yesterday differed on the controversial pro-revolution protests called by the hitherto unknown activists group, Global Coalition for Security and Democracy.
The police in Osun and Ogun states have arraigned nine persons for allegedly participating in Monday’s RevolutionNow protests.
Five of them – Owolabi Olawale (32), Fagunwa Temitope (29), Oluwafemi Johnson (28), Owoeye OlaOluwa (22) and Omoleye Stephen (21) – were arraigned yesterday before a Magistrate Court, sitting in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.
Four others – Daniel Abraham, 29, Afofun Festus, 18, Kolawole Seun, 25 and Okoro Romeo, 38 – were arraigned on three-count charge of conspiracy, unlawful assembly and conduct likely to cause breach of public peace, before a Magistrates’ Court sitting in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
Oshiomhole, the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), who has led many protests, said he supported protests but would not back any call for a revolution.
The police smashed the protests, scheduled for 21 cities on Monday, arrested its lead organiser, Omowole Sowore, and several others.
To the NLC, the “attack” on the protesters is an affront on democracy. It called for the release of Sowore and the others.
Addressing State House correspondents after a meeting of the APC National Working Committee (NWC) with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Oshiomhole said: “What was the reason for the protest? Let’s be honest. I have led series of protest, even to this Villa. Whoever wants to protest should articulate the particulars of his grievances and make specific demands about the solutions that he wants.
“So, what exactly, as far as you know as members of the fourth estate of the realm, that Sowore, the publisher of Sahara Reporters, a presidential candidate cleared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to bid for power, who had an opportunity to ask Nigerians to vote for him, want?
“Now, Nigerians have voted, the votes have been counted and he was not a favoured candidate. What does he want now? That Nigerians must make him the President?
“Because we all have to be careful; nobody should talk as if we have another country. We have challenges, but somehow, we have all resolved as a people that the way to power is in the ballot box. Our task as a people is to continue to work to clean up the system so that only Nigerians alone shall determine who governs them at all levels.
“That I believe is a legitimate thing to fight for. But if you want to overthrow, you want a revolution, then, he should have spared us the INEC putting him on the ballot paper.
“I don’t want to talk about this, but I believe Nigerians have a right to protest, I believe people have a right to contest issues, people have the right to disagree.
“I have often said government doesn’t have the right to dictate to people how to protest, but you must state exactly what you want.
“Go and check the dictionary and political meaning of a revolution. If it comes, it will be like the Christmas turkey: nobody knows which one will be slaughtered first on Christmas.
“I think we do need to take things seriously, we have serious issues in this country. I have my own reservations about many things, but we have submitted to this process and we must work hard to make it work.
“…There is no question that we have challenges, but I don’t think if you were an American, British, Ghanaian or even a Nigerian, you were about to set up a farm or a factory and you hear that a revolution is in the making, in which country do you here that? You go to any country, including established democracies, and say your business is to create a revolution…
“Have you monitored what is happening in France, that yellow-jacket people, who were organising those protests? Initially, when they were organising those protests, they were asking for labour reforms that President Emmanuel Macron introduced. But from there, they went into something else. You must have seen on your television screens how the French authorities dealt with that.
“I think we have to be clear. I am a believer that the right to protest is a fundamental human right. But it does not include the right to suggest that you want to overthrow a constituted order. No, there is a difference.
“As NLC President, when we were organising protests, when we had put down the head of the then President after one week of protest, I think it was the late Chief Gani Fawehinmi who said instead of pushing him out, we raised the head again. I said our purpose is to defeat a set of anti-people policies that we had seen. But recognising that we are in a democracy and that the President was elected, our mission was not to remove him from office. There is a difference between the two…”
“So, you can go and contest an election and when you lose, you say you want to do a revolution. It is not about this President; it is not about APC; it is recognising that we have challenges. Are we prepared to allow non-democratic means to effect a change?
“Nobody knows the value of democracy more than you, the media, because once upon a time two of your colleagues were convicted for allegedly plotting coup with a pen. The accusation was that he was plotting to overthrow a military government with the pen. So, we have come a long way. I am for a right to protest, but you must state what you want out of the protest. But if what you want is a forceful change, then the issue goes beyond that and we have to look at the laws.”