#ENDSARS: Why Northern Youths Must Rise Now! By Kunle Wizeman Ajayi
Two limitations debarred the full blown victory of the Great #EndSARS: the Workers’ absence; and the lack of its spread accross the whole country, especially the core North. These factors are yet to be resolved one year after the #LekkiMassacre that halted the most amazing, massive, and longest mass movement of youths in the world’s most populated black country.
The working class are actually the most effective class in any social movement because of their economic power. Labour creates wealth. This is why strikes are the most feared of all protest cultures. Strikes are a combination of shutdown and mass rallies. The greatest strike so far is the January 2012 Uprising Against Subsidy Removal. And it was forced by mass protests in the streets led by the civil society organisations. But till October 20th when the Lekki massacre was conducted by the rulers, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) never joined the #EndSARS mass movement. Weakened and compromised, the Labour bearucracy maintained a criminal hold on icing the cake of the #EndSARS protests as it transformed into #EndBadGovernance at most barricades. This led to the youth movement calling for *Youth Strike* on October 18th and started implementations on the 19th. It was such a watershed that would have beaten off the criminal hold of the NLC and TUC on the needed downtool of workers. For the two days of the Youth Strike, workers complied happily. But the state responded by drowning the #EndSARS movement in blood.
While the #EndSARS held across Benue; Plateau; Nassarawa; Kwara and other states of the North Central, only Adamawa, Taraba states had marches on records. The North West was scanty except for Kaduna and Kano. But most of the North moved massively during the Post-#EndSARS Palliative liberation s from malls stacked by thieving politicians.
One year after, insecurity is ravaging the whole of the North and the mass of youths seems isolated from the national movements. This is largely to the war situations and the fact that the elites are muscling the media spaces to sell fake public opinions make it seems as if Northern people are against the South and are therefore contented with the genocides going on there. This has blocked national solidarity for hashtags like #EndInSecurity. The true mood is so sad and angry all through the North. The people want political actions and have been marching all along. Social movements across the South should network more with genuine movements in the North. This can work seriously through unconditional solidarity actions against insecurity in the North. No where is actually safe all over Nigeria as I type.
As youths are marching all over Nigeria on Wednesday to mark one year after the cruel cordinated massacres from Lekki to Oyigbo, we all need to start mobilizing the working class to rise out of their downpressing by NLC and TUC. We need the strikes to strengthen the mass movement.
Also, our hearts must go out to the North over the war by both state and Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists. We must start organising political actions in solidarity with Northern youths and workers. We must abandon all the divisions fostered on us from the top. What suffers Lagosians, also suffers Sokoto people.
The time for all Oppressed to united and fight is now so our #EndSARS heroes never die in vain!
