US embassy cable - 04ABUJA1040

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 001040 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/09/2014 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PHUM, EPET, NI 
SUBJECT: FUEL STRIKE ENTERS DAY 2: COMING OR GOING 
 
REF: A. ABUJA 1032 
     B. ABUJA 1012 
 
CLASSIFIED BY AMBASSADOR JOHN CAMPBELL FOR REASONS 1.5 (b) 
AND (d). 
 
1. (C)  SUMMARY:  The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) strike 
began its second day much as the first day.  Businesses, 
especially banks and filling stations, remain closed in many 
parts of the country.  The strike remains for the most part 
non-violent, but a clash outside NLC headquarters today 
claimed two victims.  It is too early to say whether the 
shootings at NLC headquarters will prolong the strike or 
hasten its demise.  Government sources claim the GON is 
trying to enforce marketers' compliance with the court order 
to reduce gasoline prices back to 38 Naira per liter, but 
also say that NLC leader Adams Oshiomhole could be detained 
by Friday.  The gasoline marketers remain confused on the 
mechanism for reducing prices, and on the viability of 
continuing to do business in Nigeria.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  (U)  This cable is a joint product of Embassy Abuja and 
Consulate General Lagos.  Notwithstanding the Friday holiday, 
the EAC will meet over the long weekend if circumstances 
change. 
 
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The Progress of the Strike 
-------------------------- 
 
3.  (SBU)  The NLC strike (reftels) against the latest hike 
in fuel prices began June 10 much as it began June 9.  NLC 
teams continue circulating to inform the public that the 
strike is on, and to encourage -- or force -- compliance. 
Spokesmen at the NLC expressed satisfaction about the wide 
public participation, and also about the support from other 
political and civil organizations.  Public skepticism remains 
high about the NLC's motivation, but popular frustration with 
the Obasanjo regime serves to bolster support for the NLC. 
Much as during the 2003 strike, many Nigerians express their 
support for NLC but temper that with fear that NLC leaders 
will call off the strike in exchange for personal gain. 
 
4.  (SBU)  Bureaucrats at Nigeria's Federal Secretariat 
reported for work on the morning of June 10, signed the 
attendance book intended to prevent participation in the 
strike, and left for home.  Filling stations and banks remain 
closed in Abuja and Lagos, and Nigeria's domestic air traffic 
continues to experience disruptions.  The heavier than usual 
security presence continues throughout the country.  In 
addition to Benue, Kano, Kaduna and Katsina states, reports 
indicate similar closings in Yobe, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Abia, 
Anambra and Enugu states. 
 
5.  (U)  The Sultan of Sokoto asked residents of Sokoto State 
not to participate in the strike, and the local NLC head 
agreed.  The strike never started in Sokoto, and the NLC 
executive has reportedly sacked its Sokoto representative. 
At the other end of the country, the opposition AD Governor 
and Deputy Governor of Lagos joined the strike, staying away 
from their offices on June 10. 
 
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A Violent Incident 
------------------ 
 
6.  (SBU)  While the strike remains non-violent almost 
everywhere, a clash occurred at the NLC headquarters in Abuja 
about midday June 10.  An eyewitness says that an NLC 
"compliance patrol" was returning from visits to several 
filling stations in Abuja's central area, and encountered a 
heavy police presence at the headquarters.  NLC leader Adams 
Oshiomhole and Police Commissioner Lawrence Alobi were 
reportedly engaged in a heated discussion.  According to the 
NLC, Alobi was advising NLC leaders that they should not move 
around town because "police could not guarantee their 
security," a common euphemistic threat in Nigeria. 
 
7.  (SBU) Police say that the group of "okada" (motorcycle 
taxi) drivers became unruly and that police used teargas and 
shot in the air to warn the crowd, wounding one driver in the 
leg.  NLC sources claim that two people were shot, and one 
died from abdominal wounds.  The other's condition is 
undetermined.  The victims and two motorcycles were carried 
away by the police and there is no word of their whereabouts. 
 When the incident occurred, Poloff was on the phone with a 
journalist who at the scene, and at least five shots were 
clearly audible on the phone.  Two hours after the incident, 
Commissioner Alobi told RSO he did not know what had happened 
when the shots were fired. 
 
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Texaco Nigeria Tries to Comply--for Now 
--------------------------------------- 
 
8.  (C)  Government sources claim that GON efforts are also 
underway to enforce compliance with the court order and that 
marketers are encouraged to re-open at the previous 
court-mandated price levels.  They also claim that this is a 
move to divert support for the strike before re-raising the 
prices later.  One GON source claims that the decision has 
been taken by government to detain NLC leader Adams 
Oshiomhole, predicting the arrest could happen by Friday. 
 
9.  (SBU)  O.T. "Jimmy" Adelekan, Executive Director of 
Texaco Nigeria, told Econoff on June 10 that the Petroleum 
Products Pricing Regulatory Authority (PPPRA) issued a 
directive on June 9 to reduce prices significantly, nearly to 
the level in the June 8 ruling, and Texaco station managers 
have complied. He expressed concerns about the current 
gasoline inventories purchased that were at higher wholesale 
prices than the current retail price cap. Adelekan also 
reiterated his colleagues' opinion that NNPC not become the 
sole fuel importer again, but private companies are unlikely 
to commit to fuel importation under the "buy high, sell low" 
pricing regime. 
 
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What's Next? 
------------ 
 
10.  (C) COMMENT:  With fuel prices dropping, at least in the 
short term, it is unclear whether the public may feel that 
the reason for the strike has been resolved.  On the other 
hand, the shootings may harden the resolve of the NLC and its 
strike partners for more permanent change in the way Nigeria 
is run.  Nigeria awaits further pronouncements from the NLC 
and the GON to clarify the situation, but the momentum may 
carry the strike through the weekend. 
CAMPBELL