BNW

B N W: Biafra Nigeria World News

News Sport Weather World Service Languages Low Graphics version | Change edition About BBC News | Feedback | Help News Front Page Africa Americas Asia-Pacific Europe Middle East South Asia UK Business Health Science/Nature Technology Entertainment ----------------- Have Your Say In Pictures Week at a Glance Country Profiles In Depth Programmes LANGUAGES MORE > Last Updated: Thursday, 14 October, 2004, 15:39 GMT 16:39 UK E-mail this to a friend Printable version Nigerian press backs fuel strike Commentators in the Nigerian press largely back the four-day general strike against the government's decision to increase petrol prices. The government has increased petrol prices by 25% Some believe that at a time when oil prices have reached record highs, extra revenue from Nigeria's oil fields should go towards helping Nigerians, and not be making them poorer. "With prices of $50 per barrel, and two million barrels of crude oil being supplied by Nigeria every day to the international market, for God's sake, Nigerians don't need to suffer", exclaims Chidi Egwuasi in the Daily Champion. What should be a windfall for the Nigerian people, he writes, has in fact turned into a "curse due to the wicked calculations of our leaders". No winners "Fuel strike: Nigerians are losers", is the sombre headline in This Day. A commentator in the Daily Champion agrees that neither the strike nor the price hikes are helping Nigeria. "The truth has to be told that both petroleum price increases and the strike by the NLC are two rotten palm nuts which have no alternative uses", he argues. Anger directed against President Olusegun Obasanjo's government is widespread. The strike action is a moral imperative and a necessity to save Nigeria Ujudud Sharrif, Daily Trust "We need not look any further than the Nigerian political and elite class as the problem with Nigeria", says a commentary in the Vanguard. "It is a paradox that a country which is the sixth largest producer of crude oil... is one of the poorest countries in the world." 'Keg of gunpowder' Ujudud Sharrif in the Daily Trust says disappointment in the nation's leadership is the real reason behind the strikes. "The strike action is a moral imperative and a necessity to save Nigeria," he says. The Daily Champion reminds its readers that far from being an isolated incident, it is the third general strike over fuel prices in 18 months. "The people of this great nation are tired of the incessant price increase of petroleum products", it says. The repeated disruptions lead the weekly magazine Newswatch to see worse problems ahead. It describes the third major face-off between the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), which called this and previous strikes, and the government as a "keg of gunpowder". BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages. E-mail this to a friend Printable version LINKS TO MORE AFRICA STORIES SelectZimbabwe set for treason verdictNigeria strike ends amid warningsHopes of malaria vaccine by 2010Gbagbo calls on rebels to disarmSomali president 'a man of peace'HIV in monkeys 'blocked by drug'Liberia leader committed to peaceSierra Leone nabs S Korean boatsNew planes fly to battle locustsSeven die in Canada plane crashFormer SA official denies graftDarfur 'too unsafe' for food aidCameroon priest criticises pollBushmeat trade thriving in KenyaAfrican anti-terror centre opensBreaking Darfur's stereotypesVibrant Soweto turns to the futureNigerian press backs fuel strikeAfrica's news through cartoonsWhat do Africa's children want?African elections: Your picturesSend us your pictures of AfricaProgrammes and schedules  BBC NEWS: VIDEO AND AUDIO Why Nigerian workers are taking strike action NIGERIA: TROUBLED GIANT Obasanjo's thankless task FIGHTING FOR OIL Oil capital under siege Profile: Militia leader In pictures The militia fighting for local control of Nigeria's oil wealth COMMUNAL CLASHES Eyewitness: 'Town of death' Analysis: Behind the violence In pictures Learning the lessons in the aftermath of bloodshed MUSLIM NORTH Simmering tensions Sharia 'a political tool' Tracking down Nigeria's 'Taleban' BACKGROUND Country profile Timeline More media reports Press reviews and round-ups of reports and comment from around the world RELATED INTERNET LINKS: Daily Champion This Day Vanguard Daily Trust Newswatch Nigerian government NLC The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites TOP AFRICA STORIES NOW Zimbabwe set for treason verdict Nigeria strike ends amid warnings Hopes of malaria vaccine by 2010 Gbagbo calls on rebels to disarm News alerts | E-mail services | Desktop ticker | Mobiles/PDAs Back to top ^^ News Front Page | Africa | Americas | Asia-Pacific | Europe | Middle East | South Asia UK | Business | Entertainment | Science/Nature | Technology | Health Have Your Say | In Pictures | Week at a Glance | Country Profiles | In Depth | Programmes BBC Homepage >> | BBC Sport >> | BBC Weather >> | BBC World Service >> About BBC News | Help | Feedback | News sources | Privacy & Cookies Policy | About the BBC

	BNW News
Voice of Biafra | Biafra World | Biafra Online | Biafra Web | MASSOB | Biafra Forum | BLM | Biafra Consortium
	© 2001 BNW BiafraNigeriaWorld  Privacy Policy ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Powered by ACENetwork ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
	Axiom PSI Yam Festival Series, Iri Ji Nd'Igbo the Kola-Nut Series,Nigeria Masterweb