Jan. 17 (GIN) – Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan took action against oil subsidy strikers, minutes after agreeing with union officials to roll back a legislative action that spurred the strike and lifted the price of gas to nearly double its usual price.
Soldiers were ordered into the country’s major cities and to remain while “tension” persists – something unseen since the nation abandoned military rule in 1999. The move raises new questions about freedom of speech in a nation where government power still appears absolute.
Removal of the oil subsidy which had kept gas prices affordable, spurred tens of thousands of Nigerians to take to the streets last week, demanding not just a rollback but the removal of the entire Goodluck Jonathan administration.
Strikers said their protest was not just about the subsidy. It was about rampant government corruption and the transfer of millions of naira (Nigeria’s dollars) into private hands, they said.
The deployment of soldiers against civilian protestors alarmed Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka. In a statement titled “A Gross Betrayal”, Soyinka described the presidential action as “an intolerable act of provocation”.
“Was it part of the deal reached by the government of Goodluck Jonathan, Labor Movement and Civil Society, that soldiers would be sent to occupy Lagos and intimidate the populace? This is a gross violation of the rights of citizens to congregate and give expression to whatever grievances bedevil their existence,” Soyinka said.
“Until they are removed, Nigerians as a whole should understand that the present civic action is not over and prepare to mobilize and defend their liberty. “