In February 2002, a covert operation led by former President Olusegun Obasanjo and top-ranking police officials shocked Nigeria when 37 police unionists were executed.
The plot unfolded after the National Union of Police (NUP), led by the underground efforts of a journalist-turned-activist, Teslim ‘Samore’ Oyekanmi, organised a nationwide strike. The union’s demands were largely dismissed by the police leadership, triggering a response that would cost many lives.
The faceless NUP had issued demands to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) for improved welfare of the rank and file.
These were summarily dismissed as insignificant irritations by the police top brass. Samore, however, convinced the union that the only way to make a real impact was through a mass strike.
The strike, which started in February 2002, was a ground-breaking move in Nigeria’s labour history.
President Obasanjo, alongside the entire state machinery, was caught off-guard by the power of the strike.
As Baba Aye, an activist and trade unionist recalls, “The opening chapter of this historic development was written at a bar in the ancient city of Benin. Whilst having a drink and inviting persons in the bar to join him, amidst his witty thrust of conversation, he met with some junior ranks in the Edo State Police Command.
“They complained of how they were suffering (while the top ranks were enjoying life). Most of them had not received promotions in years. Salaries were also irregular and they had to sew their uniforms at their own costs.
“Samore told them that this was because they didn’t have a union. The police officers first laughed at his suggestion that they should be unionized. Police wo/men, they said, are law enforcement officers, so they could not be unionists.
“Samore debunked this argument. He gave several examples of countries where police unions existed. Where he won them to his line of thinking was when he gave the example of POPCRU in South Africa.”
He continued, “Teslim assumed the nommé de guerre of “Monday Sule” becoming secretary of the underground NUP. He and a select few from the Edo State Police Command toured strategic centres in the country where they found support.
“The faceless NUP issued demands to the IGP for improvement of rank and file welfare. This was dismissed as mere irritation by the top brass. Tes then convinced the NUP that they had to use the ultimate power of workers/unions: the mass strike.
“In February 2002, after 9 months of building the NUP underground, the union called a strike. To say this was historic would be an understatement. President Obasanjo and the entire state machinery were thrown into a state of shock!”
Baba Aye recalled going to the First Atlantic Bank branch he used at Akure at the time.
“The manager took pains to explain to customers that they had to shut down from the following day when the strike would commence because they didn’t know how long it would last and they couldn’t guarantee security! I couldn’t hide my smirking,” he said.
However, as the strike continued, the response from the government was swift and brutal. Soldiers were deployed to take over police duties, and hundreds of rank-and-file officers suspected of being NUP members were quietly rounded up.
While all the police’s demands were implemented, except for democratic involvement, what followed was a wave of silent executions.
“Dozens were tortured, with many of these executed,” Samore recalled.
“According to Samore, probably as many as 37 persons were killed. Several of them knew Monday Sule. But they defended this knowledge with their very lives.”
The NUP was subsequently dismantled, with virtually all of its key leaders in the force among those executed. The gruesome outcome of the strike marked the end of the NUP, but not before the bravery and sacrifices of its members had echoed throughout the country.
Samore, known by the alias “Monday Sule,” was one of the key figures behind the formation of the union. He and his comrades had worked in secrecy, building support across police forces nationwide.
The union’s fight was not without its risks, and as Baba Aye noted, “He knew that he was putting his life on the line. If things went wrong, the state would definitely act nasty. But he felt this was an opening that we were duty-bound to seize.”
Before his tragic death in 2011, Samore had become a revered figure in the trade union movement. His radicalism and commitment to workers’ rights were remembered fondly by his colleagues, including Comrade Ayuba Wabba (National President) and Marcus Ighodalo Omokhuale (Secretary General) of the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), who both mourned his passing.
