SOCIALIST Labour unreservedly and unconditionally condemns the murder of Deborah Samuel Yakubu, a 200 level Home Economics student of the Sokoto State College of Education.
Deborah was killed for allegedly blaspheming against the Prophet Muhammed on a WhatsApp group. The perpetrators of this act should be brought to justice.
This killing was not spontaneous. The context in which the killing took place is one of neo-liberal economic crisis, poverty, unemployment and the use of religion by elites to divert attention away from the crisis they have created.
Uneducated, unemployed youth whose lives have been blighted by poverty and neglect have internalised this and taken on religion as a badge of identity, helped on the way by the elite who have used religion as a social glue to tie ordinary people to their fate.
This toxic brew means many are prepared to kill in defence of their beliefs. Religion has been weaponised as a means of protecting the elite and shutting down any questioning of the rotten status quo.
Nigeria is not alone in this. In India, Narenda Modi has weaponised Hinduism and used this to mobilise mobs to undertake pogroms against Muslims. In Northern Ireland, we see the outrage of Protestant gangs attacking Catholics. In Myanmar, Buddhists are launching pogroms against Muslims.
In all examples mentioned above, political corruption, economic failure and the inability of the system to provide a decent living for ordinary working people has facilitated the weaponisation of religion by elites as a means of diversion.
As socialists, we believe that religion should be a private matter and people should be able to choose to believe or not believe in peace. Socialists do not rubbish religion, we understand how religion and religious thinking has arisen and how under the alienating conditions of capitalism, it brings succour to ordinary people. We also understand that in a class divided society, in periods of economic crisis, when the elite has no answer or solution to the problems facing the masses, weaponisation of religion and ethnicity is used as a means of distraction for ordinary people.
As socialists, we fight for the right of believers to practice their religion in peace, free from elite weaponisation and manipulation of religion.
However, the elite are not waiting for their reward in the afterlife. They are building heaven on Earth for themselves by looting and stealing resources that belong to all.
Look at the recent spectacle of politicians spending 100 Million Naira each to obtain nomination forms from their political party. Some working people would have to die and reincarnate several times just earn that kind of money that these people are spending at the drop of a hat.
These are the same people that say that Nigeria cannot afford to pay the minimum wage to workers, refuse to reach agreement with the striking ASUU lecturers, refuse to provide proper public education, health, good roads etc.
It demonstrates that Nigeria has the resources to provide every working person with a better life but the resources have been captured by the elite.
If we want to honour Deborah’s memory, then we need to build the largest coalition of the willing; of Muslims, Christians, of working people from all the nationalities that make up Nigeria, a coalition of those willing to remove this useless elite that only give us pain, suffering and hardship: and build a different Nigeria where all working people will have the resources to live a civilised life and be at peace with each other.
We have shown what we can do when we come together. During the Kaduna State strike, all the religious bigots and ethnic champions ran away.
We did it once, we can do it again. Let’s start building for Deborah’s sake and for all the other Deborahs and Aminas that may be currently in the crosshairs of the bigots.
Biodun Olamosu, National Secretary, Socialist Labour
