All eyes were on labour last week. I am not talking about the Labour Party which has been the cynosure of many eyes since the past year. I am talking about Organized Labour. I suppose there is a distinction between the two though the lines sometimes get blurred given the antics of the latter. One is a political party, positioned ostensibly as a third force after the dismal performance of PDP and APC. Unfortunately, it is in reality, largely populated by those who were frustrated out of power and position by the demi-gods of PDP and APC. In the years that it has been in existence, I have found no ideological niche which the party has carved for itself neither have I found a desire to serve the interests of the proletariat by those among them, who have succeeded in grapping power. In fact, once in office, they drop all toga and blend with their colleagues from other parties in promoting narrow, selfish interests. Organized Labour on the other hand, should really be about the dignity of labour; it should be about the proletariat. Canopied under NLC and TUC, Organised Labour is ideally about the Nigerian workers – their plight, their fears, their dreams. It is expected that the leaders will sometimes need to display some political deftness in the delicate art of negotiating with the de facto rulers of the day whoever they are. But it is not expected that their actions, under the guise of fighting for the interest of workers, will be serving less noble ideals, or even worse, be read as playing open politics, especially partisan politics. It is certainly not expected that the interests of workers will be subsumed by the interests of any party however named.

Some Labour leaders had been making combative noises and spoiling for a show-down ever since INEC announced the victory of Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the polls. These agitations finally found a cause and a voice when the effects of the removal of fuel subsidy hit almost every home and every family badly. Last week, the labour leaders paralyzed economic and social lives of the people by proclaiming a day of protest. I found their day of protest hasty given the fact that all avenues for negotiations were not yet exhausted. I also found at least one of their demands suspicious. Any group that can again ask for the reinstatement of the regime of fuel subsidy which feeds our neighbours with cheap fuel at this time when the country is heavily indebted and can barely feed itself, is either being mischievous or has a hidden agenda. The argument that the refineries must work before subsidy is removed is a tired one which labour and the proponents of subsidy, use and discard as soon as it serves its purpose. Not once has organised labour, some of whose members collect salaries for work not done at the moribund refineries, raised any eyebrow at the internal sabotage that goes on within our refineries. And it is not in the interest of those who benefit from the subsidy – that includes international refineries many of which have lost over 30% of their revenues since the subsidy was removed – for our refineries to work. Organised Labour should not be seen to be serving those interests or aligning its interests with the saboteurs of the economy. That the disruptive protest found traction given emotive commentaries on the social media, with some members of the Labour Party makes one wonder if the protest is at the instigation of those party members or if there is now a fusion of the party with the union. It makes one wonder if the protest is part of a plan to create grounds for social upheavals. As if in sync, doctors have rehashed age-old grievances and have chosen this period to down tools. If asked, they would tell you it is in the national interest; to prevent things from getting worse. But any altruistic interest would give a new government a breathing space and a chance to chart its direction rather than compound an already dire situation with a strike.

A week before the Labour protest, one of Nigeria’s northern neighbours witnessed a coup - another one too many in the West African sub-region. The poor masses in Niger have trooped out jubilating and denouncing everything French and American. And Nigerian. Time will tell if their jubilation is not premature. Emerging facts suggest that it was more of a coup of self-interest than of national interest. We have had enough coups in Nigeria to know that almost all of them are self-serving. In any case, having East replace West – as the coupists are threatening to do – in the power dynamics of Niger will not dramatically change the fortune of the average Nigerien.

In the midst of all these upheavals, President Tinubu submitted his ministerial list in two – or is it three – batches to the National Assembly. I don’t know the antecedents of some of the names and they may well be accomplished technocrats. But some of the ones I do know leave an empty feeling in the gut. I know where those ones are coming from and the roles they have played in the polity and I am not impressed. I tried to believe the President – I am not alone - when he promised a government of national competence as opposed to the often mouthed government of national unity. After all, his reputation for spotting talents and deploying them for the greater good, preceded him. That reputation now seems exaggerated because no one, not even the President’s most ardent supporters will say his team is the ‘best eleven’ the nation can offer. The best one can say of that list is that the President is rewarding loyalty since many names on the list played critical roles in the emergence of Mr President to power. Many of them might still play critical roles in the consolidation of Mr President in office. The emergence of party Chairman and leading officers of the National Assembly has followed the same template. So the overriding criterion in all of these appointments seems to be self-interest masquerading as national interest. The sheer numbers of the unwieldy list from a government we thought would reduce the cost of governance is also confounding.

Unfortunately, a winning team is that which comprises of skill, right positioning, commitment, synergy and merit. Loyalty has its place no doubt but it should not be overriding considering the shifting sands of politics where there is no permanent friendship and friends at breakfast can become enemies at dinner. May the President’s current men and women ‘remain loyal sir!’ to borrow a street parlance.

•Muyiwa Adetiba is a veteran journalist and publisher. He can be reached via titbits2012@yahoo.com

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