US embassy cable - 03LAGOS2200

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LAGOS 002200 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
PASS GURNEY, LONDON AND NEARY, PARIS 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB, EPET, PGOV, PHUM, SOCI, NI, XY 
SUBJECT: NIGERIA: TALK OF "MASS PROTESTS" ON FUEL 
DEREGULATION 
 
REF: (A) LAGOS 2081 (B) ABUJA 1737 (C) LAGOS 2147 
 
 
LABOR AND CIVIL SOCIETY MAY DEMONSTRATE AGAIN 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
 
(SBU) 1. The Labor and Civil Society Coalition (LASCO) held a 
press conference on 
October 23 and accused the GON and oil marketers of breaking 
an agreement reached 
between the parties on October 8. (Refs A, B)  National 
Labour Congress (NLC) 
officials told us that new organized mass action is planned 
for November 
6.  LASCO members have scheduled a meeting to mobilize 
supporters 
early in the week of October 27.  Surprisingly, the word 
"strike" has not been 
used in formal or informal documents from LASCO regarding the 
planned 
mobilization.  Leaders have used the phrase "mass protest" 
instead. 
 
 
(SBU) 2.  Bamidele Aturu, President of the United Action for 
Democracy (UAD) and 
Co-Chairman of LASCO, told POLOFF on October 23 that a final 
decision on the 
"mass protest" would be made at a meeting next week.  Aturu 
explained that LASCO 
officials favor democratic processes and seek broad member 
support prior to 
approving any action.  Aturu was critical of the Nigerian 
National Petroleum 
Corporation (NNPC) and of its move to increase the price of 
fuel in its depots from 
N28 to N33, just below the agreed upon retail price of N34. 
He accused the GON and 
oil marketers of operating with "impunity" and asserted that 
the GON is obligated 
to regulate the price of fuel for the welfare of the people. 
A LASCO press release 
stated that the GON's policy of deregulation is "totally 
unacceptable," arguing that 
petroleum products "are so crucial to the well-being of the 
individual and the 
nation that their supply and distribution cannot be left to 
the whims and 
caprices of marketers and market prices." 
 
 
(SBU) 3.  Except for some NLC officials, however, many LASCO 
leaders argue that the 
current confrontation with GON transcends fuel deregulation 
and addresses the very 
nature of Nigerian democracy itself (Ref C).  Aturu, for 
example, bemoaned the lack 
of a "democracy dividend" and said: "we didn't fight the 
military regime for bad 
government, corruption, and insecurity."  (Comment. UAD, an 
umbrella organization for 
many human rights groups, was last nationally active during 
the Abacha military 
regime and was responsible for organizing the "Five Million 
Man March" on Lagos 
to protest that regime. End Comment) 
 
 
GON DELAYS PROMISED CIVIL SERVANT SALARY INCREASE 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
 
(SBU) 4. Adding fuel to the fire, the GON has put off to 
October the retroactive 12.5% 
salary increase it promised for July to public sector 
workers.  The GON justified the 
move expressing concern about the inflationary impact of 
paying four months of salary 
arrears.  NLC officials countered that fuel deregulation has 
already caused 
"inflationary damage," and confided to us that the NLC still 
plans to direct its efforts 
to fuel deregulation.  Other civil society contacts also 
voiced their concerns to PolOff 
that the burden of increased fuel prices is too onerous for a 
population whose income 
has remained stagnant for years. 
 
 
(SBU) 5.  COMMENT: The NLC remains the power broker in LASCO 
and has drummed up 
enthusiasm within civil society on the issue of fuel 
deregulation.  This enthusiasm 
appears to reflect a strong desire to use the fuel issue to 
address the myriad of other 
problems civil society sees in the nascent Nigerian 
democracy.   However, much of the 
general public passion that was palpable just before the 
planned strike and protests 
of early October has dissipated, and LASCO may have a hard 
row to hoe to reinvigorate 
the Nigerian public into mass protest action over fuel 
deregulation.  The oft brought 
up grievance of civil society remains the federal 
government's perceived unwillingness 
to implement policy within the institutions of a democratic 
system and to consult 
civil society before taking actions that affect society at 
all levels. 
GREGOIRE