The Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) has called on the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force to release the Revolution Now protesters, unconditionally.
SPN while reacting, maintained that the attack against protesters demonstrated how weak and scared the President Muhammadu Buhari government is.
Acting National Chairperson and National Secretary of the party, Comrades Abiodun Bamigboye and Chinedu Bosah, speaking on behalf of the party on Thursday, charged the leadership of the labour movement to wake up to their responsibility and rise to condemn what they termed as disregard for democratic rights of people.
The union also urged trade unions, socialist and pro-masses organisations to mobilise working people into a mass movement to fight attacks on their living condition.
“Socialist Party of Nigeria (SPN) sternly condemns the attacks on the democratic rights of the “Revolution Now” protesters by the security operatives on Wednesday, August 5, 2020. We hereby demand the immediate and unconditional release of those arrested and still being detained by the police and DSS.
“As we predicted, the Buhari regime is using the COVID-19 pandemic and physical distancing rules to repress the right to protest. This was shown by the statement of the FCT Commissioner of Police who claimed that the protesters were arrested not because of their protest but because of violation of the COVID-19 guidelines which forbids mass gathering. This is a cynical attempt to attack the right to protest and we reject it.
“The protest today was met, just like the previous one, with bestial attacks from security operatives. In Lagos, over 20 protesters were arrested, in Osun state about 8 protesters were arrested and over 60 were arrested in Abuja.
“The Buhari/APC and the entire capitalist ruling class have clearly displayed their inability to change the inimical economic reality of the working masses. Today, all indices that could be used to measure development are in the negative. The current pandemic has further made the situation worse. Out of attempts to place the blame of the fallouts from the pandemic on the poor masses, many jobs have been lost and many persons have been condemned to penury.
“However, this attack against protesters demonstrates how weak and scared the Buhari government is of the rise of the masses to fight back through political action especially given its monumental failure and its unflinching capitalist attacks being unleashed on the masses such as fuel price hike, tax increases, etc.
“We charge the leadership of the labour movement to wake up to their responsibility and rise to condemn this tragic disregard for democratic rights of people. We also demand that trade unions, socialist and pro-masses organisations must begin to mobilise mass of working people into a mass movement to fight against attacks on their living condition and struggle for political power to build a better society”. They said.