TWO HIGH Court rulings ordered the full disclosure of Presidential ballots in Nigeria thwarting attempts to stall last week's electoral process.
A pro-military pressure group, the Association for a Betfer Nigeria, won an initial injunction preventing publication of results in order to extend the military dictatorship.
Behind this move is the all too visible hand of General Ibrahim Babangida, architect of the transistion from 8 years of military government to 'civilian' rule.
Babangida created and named the only two legal parties, drew up their constitutions and manifestos. and even built two exactly similar headquarters for them in the capital, Abuja.
The "little to the left", Social Democratic Party (SP) is led by MKO Abiola and the little to the right, National Republican Convention (NRC) is led by Bashir Tofa.
Both are milionaire businessmen, Muslims in a religious, ethnic and regionally fractured country. and not noted opponents of the dictatorship.
In fact both candidates have promised indemnity to the military for human rights violations during their authoritarian rule.
Significantly, both Abiola and Tofa hail from the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) tradition. This multi-ethnic, mutli-religious party formed the last democratically elected government and represents the Nigerian bourgeoisie.
This may explain the hair'sbreadth difference in the rival parties economic policies.
Eariy indications were that the SDP's Abiola had won 20 out of the 30 states. The NRC were crying foul because their candidates names had been omitted from the ballot form.
Abiola has promised to replace the hated IMF austerity programme with one of his own and to uproot poverty in 6 months.
When asked how he would pay for his campaign commiments and satisty international creditors, Abiola replied in an in"The most imoortant thing that Jesus asked his disciples - was to give us today our daily bread... We can make everything here."
This is outrageous nonsense in a country with a national debt of US$30 billion; where 1 per cent of the population controls 75 per cent of the wealth; and where staple foods are imported that could easily be grown localigeria's fate is of concern for the future socialist revolution in Africa.
It is the continent's most populous country. It is one of the world's largest exporters of oil, and has vast untapped natural gas reserves. Along with South Africa and Zimbabwe it is an economic powerhouse.
While radical students have been active in protests against various governments, this is no substitute for the concerted action of the working class and poor peasantry in defence of their interests.
It is vital that the Nigerian Labour Congress, National Association of Nigerian Students and socialist feminists around Women of Nigeria' redouble their efforts to build a Labour Party.
Whether Babangida will honmilitary and himself from gorernment remains to be seen. The chicanery of the last week makes it look doubtful.
One commentator observes. 'There are only two political parArmy.*