At the Anniversary lecture with a theme: “NLC @40 Yesterday Today and Tomorrow, National Unity and Social Justice,” speaker after speaker condemned the recent abduction of another 111 schools girls from Dapchi after the experience of Chibok girls.
Leading the call for Buhari resignation is Prof. Member Gonye, from Benue State University who was one of the lead discussants and the first President of NLC Comrade Hassan Sunmonu. A former University don at the Obafemi Awolowo University and Professor of Botany, Prof. Toye Olorede delivered the lecture with Comrade Sylvester Ejiofoh, Dr Yahaya Hashim, Chief Femi Falana as co-discussants.
Specifically, Prof. Gonye said those who were involved and affected in the security of the students should have resigned.
She pointed out that it was very unfortunate a gang of Boko Haram criminals can walk into a school and took away the innocent students, saying that it is only in Nigeria something like this can happen and people would be comfortable and nobody will resign.
Giving an example of America, she pointed out that if something like this took place, those who are affected would have resigned.
Describing it as a shame, she wondered why the President of the country, members of the National Assembly would be comfortable by now without some of them resigning from their position.
In his lecture Prof. Olorode said the labour movement must wage a new patriotic struggle for political and economic independence of Nigeria from the two vultures, adding that Nigeria’s working people must take their country back by declaring that the masses, not a few rich and their foreign masters, own Nigeria.
He pointed out that the movement must insist that to wipe out poverty, inequality, illiteracy, violence and crimes, Nigeria’s economy needs planning and with market mechanisms controlled by the interests of the masses of Nigeria’s working people.
Besides, he said Nigerians must insist that to enable planning, maximise the use of our human and material resources and stop wastes, public ownership and control of the commanding heights of the economy in production.
He said distribution and exchange had become necessary; while education, health, water supply, housing and environmental protection must also be principally in the public sector.
Prof Olorode said: “All the IMF- and World Bank-inspired policies of reduction of the public sector, devaluation of the Naira, unending debt slavery, liberalisation of trade, removal of subsidies, sale and privatisation of public assets, etc. must be reversed immediately. Education, public health and agriculture must receive public subsidies as a priority.
“We insist that corruption is the product of the ideology of capitalist accumulation of private-sector-led economies. We see Chief Executives in handcuffs in the USA and other capitalist countries almost every day; that has not reduced corruption there.
ALSO READ: Former CBN deputy governor wants board, more independence for CBN
“Corruption will not disappear because a few scape-goats are disgraced or imprisoned. Capitalism produces and reproduces corruption because the rich also fund the ruling-class political parties. There are always members of the ruling circles that cannot be punished.
“We insist that only socialist economic planning arising from public control of the economy can cure an economy of the disease of periodic changes from prosperity to recessions; there is no Policy Document cure for this disease under the so-called market-forces economies.”
He added: “All of Nigeria’s public assets that were looted through what the call privatisation, concessions, PPP, etc. must be taken back from the looters. Since no political party told Nigerians that public properties and assets would be sold or auctioned, all public officers and political office holders who do not accept a people-oriented organisation of the Nigerian economy as stated in Chapter II of Nigeria’s Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria must resign immediately.”
and then