By
Alfred Adegoke (Protem Chairperson, SPN Osun State)
The Osun State Chapter
of the Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) condemns the latest assault by the Rauf
Aregbesola/ACN government of Osun state on the democratic right of workers to
seeking improvements in their living and working conditions, and calls for full
implementation of national minimum wage that has become law since 2011.
The state government
has dragged Osun State workers to National Industrial Court (NIC) over the minimum
wage. It has already secured an injunction against strike being planned by
workers. It is also seeking , among other things, that court declares payment of N18, 000 minimum wage to all
categories of workers, especially those earning more than N18, 000, illegal.
This is a government
that employed 20, 000 youths under the Osun State Youth Employment Scheme
(OYES) with poor wages (less than N10, 000 monthly); with no right to unionize
or any hazard benefit; even when the labour law compels every employer of over
50 workers to pay minimum wage, and regularize such employment.
Workers had hinged
suspension of a previous two-month strike in September last year on
government's promise to implement the new wage for all workers when state
revenue improved. The federal allocations had more than doubled the state
revenue since then while the governor claimed early this year that the
government had saved over N35 billion. Meanwhile, workers' wages are being
eaten up by inflation and rising cost of living, especially as basic costs of
foodstuffs have risen sharply while basic social services like education,
healthcare, water, electricity, etc have been commercialized and privatized, as
the case may apply.
It is unfortunate that
despite the huge resources - monetary, human, natural and mineral - in the
state, Osun State government cannot improve the well being of the people.
Public education at all levels is still underfunded and commercialized as most
of the public primary and secondary schools are still in the parlous state the
ousted Oyinlola/PDP government left them. The state tertiary institutions are
priced out of the reach of children of the poor working people. The healthcare
is in the same horrible state. All this is happening despite the propaganda of
the state government.
Ultimately, workers
need their own party that will advance their interests. Workers need a party
with a clear-cut socialist programme that will carry out mass state investment
in social and public services, including
adequate maximum wage to create decent jobs for all workable population
and make better living for the working and poor people. This is as against the
current neo-liberal policies practiced by all major ruling political parties.
Such a party will have to be committed to nationalization of the mainstay of
the economy under the democratic control and management of the working people.
Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) stands for these programmes, and we enjoin all
workers and the poor to join the party to build a strong force to establish a genuine
working people’s government.
Workers must reject
this latest assault on their democratic and economic rights. The labour unions
must call immediate congresses of workers, starting from the local level, and
then to the state level. Mass campaign materials like leaflets, posters,
handbills, etc must be produced; while rallies, protest marches must be
organized along with these. Moreover, workers must reject an attempt to gag
them; thus, a one-day warning strike must be called to send appropriate signal
to the state government. Such strike must be well publicized and mobilized for
as much as the state labour leadership has publicized the court injunction
among the rank and file workers. This is becoming very important in order not
to create a negative precedent wherein government or employers of labour could
quickly rush to NIC to get an injunction any time there is an impeding plan by
workers to go on strike in pursuance of any of their demands. Essentially, workers, in order to mobilize
other oppressed strata must link their agitation with other social demands. For
instance, they must demand that the casual workers under OYES must be employed
as full time workers with all rights.
