By Fidel Davynovich, Ajegunle DSM
In the
very hour of 8:00 am on Thursday 6 April, 2017 overone hundred students from
different tertiary institutions led by SAVE UNILAG COALITION staged a united
protest at the Special Offenses Mobile Court inside Lagos State Task Force Building
located at Bolade, Oshodi, Lagos state. The mobile court is a special creation
of the Lagos State government – a government bent on literarily whipping to
death poor working class families with draconian anti-policies.
The
Education Rights Campaign (ERC) is working within the SaveUNILAG Coalition
alongside other groups and unions to campaign against victimization and for
recall of rusticated students and ban on students’ unionism at the University
of Lagos (UNILAG).
The April
6 protest was to demand the release of Adeyeye Femi and 12 other students’
protesters who were brought before the court on that day for continuation of
trial on false charges. The 13 were arrested on Friday 31st March
2017 and hurriedly arraigned before the Special offenses Mobile Court on a
Saturday morning on spurious charges. They were subsequently detained at
Kirikiri prison. Their arrest sparked outrage especially when it turned out
that the charges were completely false!
Lagos Police Boss, Fatai
Owoseni, Caught Lying
In the
charge sheet, the police claimed they vandalized properties of Television
Continental (a private TV station) but the TV station swiftly came out to say
that though the students were at their premises to protest against continuous
victimization in UNILAG, they were peaceful and orderly and there was no
incidence of vandalism. A video evidence of the students while at the TV
station was circulated. The TV station also ran an official disclaimer at every
hourly news bulletin over the weekend and also put the Lagos State Commissioner
of Police, Fatai Owoseni, on a live phone call where the CP was caught
contradicting himself in his web of lies. This was the important background to
the April 6 protest which drew participants who were not simply angry at the
unlawful detention of the students but even more outraged by the role of the
police, a public institution funded by tax payers’ money, which was clearly
being used as private thugs of the UNILAG management.
Members
of the Education Rights Campaign (ERC), Democratic Socialist Movement (DSM) and
the Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN), joined students from other tertiary
institutions like LASU, TASUED, YABATECH, who in a rare show of solidarity,
came to the protest to condemn the unlawful arrest and demand the release of
the 13 students.
Both
printed and electronic media were also present to cover the solidarity action
that further confirmed the political might of united struggle against neo-liberal
attacks on public education. Also the students’ struggle, judging from the
protest and successful release of the detained students, shows the potential
for rebuilding the students’ movement which has suffered several set-backs over
the years as a result of the ideological degeneration of the National
Association of Nigerian Students (NANS).
Public Support
The
protest largely got the sympathy from the general public, commuters, market men
and women, workers including some of the rank and file police men armed to the
teeth at Oshodi. Some of the police men that formed a barricade in front of the
Lagos State Task Force Office felt the agitated voice of the protesters chanting
solidarity songs peacefully while raising up placards. In the heat of the
chanted songs that was causing major attention from the sympathetic public, the
protesters demanded that government should fund public education with 26%
budgetary allocation recommended by UNESCO than what is being budgeted (7%) for
public education in Nigeria by the Buhari/APC government.
While
this becomes a political statement on the lip of the protesters, the students
also called for the release of the arrested 13 students as well as recall of
all rusticated students by the UNILAG management. They subsequently also used
the opportunity to further condemn the barbaric victimization being carried out
at Federal and State universities just as is being witnessed in UNILAG.
Addressing
the protesters, Sanyaolu Juwon, the Secretary of the SAVE UNILAG COALITION described
as unethical and unacceptable the penchant of managements of tertiary
institutions to unleash attacks on students when they peacefully protest for
their rights. Juwon also called on the UNILAG management to unban the Students
Union so that students can democratically organize themselves to defend their
collective interests.
Members
of DSM and ERC who were at the protest organized the movement to prevent any
form of disorderliness and violence. The comrades were able to guide against
whatever might turn the protest violent to the benefit of the state. This was
happening around 9:30am while when the case was still going on. The protesters
were prevented by the armed police men from gaining access into the compound so
they staged their protest in front of the main building of the Mobile
Court.
ASUU and Other Staff Unions
Challenged to Act
H.T Soweto
(National Coordinator of ERC and member of DSM) while addressing the press and
protesters punch the heart of the whole purpose of the agitation, saying that
we are not under a military regime where university managements will begin to implement
directives that students do not have rights of association and freedom of
speech. He also demanded that the 13 detained students must be released unconditionally.
He also called for the rank and file police to have a democratic union to
defend their interests.
While rounding off his speech, Soweto pointed out that
the relentless attack on students’ democratic rights in UNILAG following a
students’ protest against poor welfare conditions in April 2016 poses a special
danger to the workers unions on the campus. If the UNILAG management is able to
get away with these victimizations, it would be emboldened to do the same for
workers as well. This is why the silence of the staff unions is unacceptable.
He called on ASUU, SSANU, NASU and NAAT to publicly condemn the victimization
and to join students in a united struggle to fight both for recall of
rusticated students as well as for proper funding of education.
Ayo
Ademiluyi (DSM member and lawyer representing the students), said immediately
they were released that "There was no case to judge". He continued,
"The magistrate can't lay any charges against the students". Bar. Monday Ubani, the Vice President of
Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), also addressed the students briefly stating that
their fight is a just cause. He called on the students to organize themselves in
order to win more demands in coming period.
Unfortunately
there was no banner at the protest, neither was there any leaflet. Only
placards there were brought by members of ERC. They had different slogans like:
For
Adequate Funding of Public Education, (2) End Victimization of Student
Democratic Rights, (3) Release the Detained Students (4) For the Removal of
Lagos CP, Fatai Owoseni and others. All of these demands attracted a
lot of solidarity support and sympathy from commuters, traders, bus drivers,
workers, etc who saw the protest. Members of the DSM were at the protest with
the April/May edition of the Socialist Democracy. No doubt, the peaceful
protest was able to shake the Lagos State Task Force mobile court which was
variously described by protesters as a kangaroo court created not to dispense
justice but for extortion and oppression of poor people, traders, motorists and
protesters.
Tactics Ahead
After
the case was dismissed, the 13 detained students filed out of the court room to
the waiting arms of their comrades. There was wild jubilation. It was no doubt
a powerful moment and a testament to the power of organized and united struggle
– something that would motivate further students’ protests and actions in the
coming months.
After
the jubilation, students decided to march in celebration of the victory from
the mobile court to CCG. The purpose of the march was also to find an
appropriate place for a short meeting to plan concretely the next step to
advance the struggle against UNILAG management as well as against other management
of tertiary institutions that rain down victimization on students and education
workers.
From the
gate of the Lagos State Task Force Office, hundreds of the students marched in
united force on the road of Oshodi, chanting solidarity songs. In order to maintain
orderliness, the students decided to hold hands together while marching. It was
a sight to behold. The protest march took about 45 minutes before arrival at CCG
(Late Beko Ransome Kuti’s office) in Ilupeju. At CCG, there was a brief
leadership meeting. It was made up of representatives of different unions and
organizations mainly to review and plan way forward for the struggle.
Interestingly
at this point, Aruna Kadiri, president of a faction of the national leadership
of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) who had joined and
addressed the protest at the mobile court left the premises. They played no
role in the movement before and now despite the victory and the potential to
win more, they are not interested in discussing with students about what needs
to be done and the roles NANS can play. Clearly all he and his aides came to do
was simply to identify with a popular struggle in order to build their own
profile and possibly use this to negotiate payouts either form the government
or even the UNILAG management. At the end of the meeting, the students
dispersed inspired and convinced that struggle can win.
