Nigerian Military Destroys Two Militant Camps

The article is reporting that on the 25th the Nigerian military raided a militant camp in Rivers near the high violence area of the Niger Delta. A military spokesman has said that the attack did result in a heavy gunfire exchange that left numerous militants dead but the military ultimately destroyed the campsite with no casualties. In addition to that attack, a second raid was conducted on a different camp in Delta State that had similar outcomes with retrieving large amounts of both ammunition and arms from the camps. The attacks are part of a new effort by the government to stop the violence in the area.

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This article relates to what we have been learning in class by demonstrating how the government is being accountable for the violence and taking the initiative to make the effort in stopping the current situation in the Delta. Also, it shows that the government is using military force to stop the putting down the violence by the interest groups that, for the majority, are fighting for an more equal distribution of the oil wealth in Nigeria.

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Nigeria Oil Unrest 'Kills 1,000'

Sections of a report regarding revenue and lives that have been lost this past year caused by the growing oil unrest in Nigeria that was prepared for the federal government have been given to the media. The report, which is not yet published, contains information that 1,000 deaths from January to September of last year have been caused by the oil dispute along with 300 other kidnapping cases. In addition to the human sacrifices, oil exports have been cut by 25% during the past years and attacks and spillages have cost an estimated $20.7 billion. President Umaru Yar'Adua has announced that his government is considering offering armed groups an amnesty if they disarm, but Mend (the most visibly armed group in Nigeria) has dismissed his offer.

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The recent report connects to what we have been learning in class with the class cleavages because many armed groups in Nigeria are fighting for a more equal distribution of the wealth from oil. Also, President Yar'Adua's offer of amnesty shows the influence that the armed groups have on the political change and the rule of law as well as political violence and interest groups.

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Minimum wage: It’s N52,200 or nothing - Labour

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities(SSANU) and the Nigeria Labour Congress(NCL) have proposed to the federal government that the minimum wage be N52,200. Many unions have asked the federal government to implement the minimum wage immediately, stating that this is the time that Nigerians need it the most. This past weekend, the SSANU and the NLC made their position on the matter known at the Executive Council meeting at Benue State University, in Makurdi.

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This article discusses how interest groups and unions affect government policy in Nigeria. These groups are making a strong push in raising the minimum wage for the country, and the federal government may be forced to settle on the new minimum wage ammount.

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Nigerian Oil Workers Go On Strike

Oil workers for the company, Total in Nigeria, have decided to protest against the recent situations by striking. The strikers are protesting about the apparent lack of security they receive from armed groups like Mend who have been kidnapping them and their family members. In addition, the kidnappings have increased over the past few months which are fueling the protesters even more. The protesters continued their plans for strike even after their national union executive informed them that the strike would only delay industrial action. The workers picketed their company office along with employees from Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (Pengassan). There have also been repeated rape threats towards kidnapping victims including towards the wife of the former oil minister who had to pay a reported $2.5 million dollars for her release after the kidnappers released a statement declaring that they would "rape her every day" until they were paid.

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The article relates to what we have been learning in class by the social cleavages caused by oil distribution in Nigeria. The armed groups like Mend are fighting for a more equal distribution of the oil wealth instead of all the wealth continuing to only to go the rich. Political violence is also displayed in the article by kidnapping. In addition, interest groups are formed like the workers who have decided to strike and their movement to strike also displays social movements that occur in Nigeria.

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