US embassy cable - 04ABUJA1050

C O N F I D E N T I A L ABUJA 001050 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/10/2014 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, PTER, PHUM, EPET, NI 
SUBJECT: LABOR STRIKE DAY 3:  ANTICIPATION OF FRIDAY PRAYERS 
 
REF: ABUJA 1040 AND PREVIOUS 
 
Classified By: AMBASSADOR JOHN CAMPBELL FOR REASONS 1.5 (b) AND (d). 
 
1. (C)  SUMMARY:  The National Labour Congress (NLC) strike 
opened its third day with a sense of anticipation.  NLC teams 
continue circulating in many parts of the country checking 
gas stations and telling the public that the strike remains 
on.  GON officials are seen on TV similarly checking gas 
station prices in Abuja and Lagos, shutting down pumps marked 
higher than the earlier price.  Spokesmen at the NLC were 
outraged by the shootings at NLC headquarters June 10 but 
have yet to decide on the future of the strike.  In a public 
announcement late June 10, Adams Oshiomhole expressed 
satisfaction about the wide public participation and called 
for donations to support the victims of police violence.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
2.  (U)  This cable is a joint product of Embassy Abuja and 
Consulate General Lagos. 
 
3.  (SBU) Attendance at government offices and other 
locations was mixed, as in past days (reftels), and somewhat 
heavier than usual security presence continues throughout the 
country.  Extra security personnel have been stationed at 
Abuja's major mosques in an effort to head off any 
confrontation after Friday prayers.  Major businesses and 
banks remain closed, and reports indicate that the NLC has 
mobilized its compliance teams throughout the country. 
 
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Yesterday's Violence 
-------------------- 
 
4.  (SBU)  The strike remained non-violent today, but much of 
the public was apprehensive about yesterday's security 
incidents.  A reputable eyewitness to the shootings at the 
NLC headquarters maintains that he saw the two victims 
carried away in a police vehicle and says that a third person 
could have been wounded in the leg.  Police officials now 
claim two "okada" (motorcycle taxi) drivers fought with 
police at the Federal Secretariat about 3PM on June 10 and 
one of the died en route to the hospital, implying that 
people were exaggerating the admitted beating of the two 
drivers and that there was no shooting at the NLC.  It is 
unclear whether any incident occurred at the Federal 
Secretariat or if the police are using the story to cover up 
 
SIPDIS 
the other incident.  An Emboff who went to the Federal 
Secretariat within minutes of the shooting report saw people 
 
SIPDIS 
just sitting around as normal, and none of them said they had 
seen a fight or NLC officials or the Police Commissioner on 
site. 
 
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Questions from Independent Marketers 
------------------------------------ 
 
5.  (U)  A spokesman for the Independent Petroleum Marketers 
Association (IAPM) complained in a radio broadcast that the 
GON order to revert to the former 38 Naira/liter price would 
drive most filling stations out of business.  "The Government 
gives preferential treatment to the major marketers," he 
claimed, saying that Texaco, Chevron, Shell and "the 
companies owned by (President) Obasanjo and (VP) Atiku" were 
able to purchase discounted fuel.  "Seventy percent of the 
marketers must buy from the major companies at a higher 
rate," he posited.  He also criticized enforcement of the 
pricing structure, saying that the GON was unable to ensure 
compliance outside Abuja and Lagos. 
 
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What's Next? 
------------ 
 
6.  (U)  The NLC is holding a strategy meeting in the evening 
June 11 and will likely announce a decision later on whether 
to continue the strike.  One Labor official told Poloff that 
the NLC could consider suspending the strike if compliance 
with the court order was "substantial, at least fifty 
percent."  At this point, compliance is increasing in Abuja 
and Lagos, but there are reports that non-government stations 
in other parts of the country are beginning to open and sell 
fuel at any price they choose. 
 
7.  (C)  COMMENT:  It appears the GON is making an effort to 
enforce compliance with the court order.  If both sides make 
the appropriated noises about Thursday's violence, Labor may 
suspend or end the strike soon.  With substantial compliance 
with the old pricing system, the NLC would be in a position 
to declare victory and go home (or back to work). 
CAMPBELL