Former Minister of Interior and Honourary President of the Nigeria Movement of Solidarity with Cuba, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has warned that sick children and elderly citizens in Cuba are experiencing life-threatening conditions following the blocking of the country’s fuel and energy supplies by the United States of America.
According to the former Osun governor, the development has left hospitals and laboratories without adequate electricity to function effectively. He urged Africans to stand in solidarity with Cuba, which he described as being asphyxiated by the United States of America.
Reports indicate that the Cuban Revolution resulted in the nationalisation of industries and triggered a trade conflict with the U.S., leading to the seizure of American economic assets, including oil refineries. In response, the U.S. imposed a total embargo on Cuban trade, especially oxygen, with exceptions for food and medicine.
Speaking at the conference of the Nigeria Movement of Solidarity with Cuba (NMSC), themed: ‘Cuba and all countries have the right to live,’ in Abuja, Aregbesola reiterated his concerns over the humanitarian situation in Cuba.
He said countries such as Venezuela and Mexico face punishment or threats of severe sanctions for engaging in trade with Cuba or providing emergency humanitarian assistance.
“This is the time Cuba needs solidarity from all peoples of the world. It is in the enlightened self-interest of humanity to stand by Cuba not just because it is the right thing to do, but also because unless we show solidarity and stand together, powerful countries like the US will also dictate to us the God we must worship.
“We Africans ally with the Cuban people not just because they have a right like all other peoples to live, but also because it aligns with our belief in universal peace and social justice. Besides, Cubans have taught the world how to love each other and be ready to sacrifice,” he said.
Also speaking, the President General of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Engr. Festus Osifo, said the TUC of Nigeria maintains that no country should face external interference, coercive actions, or economic blockades that threaten its sovereignty and citizens’ welfare.
” We therefore reject the continued interference of the United States of America in the internal affairs of Cuba, as well as policies that impose hardship on Cuban workers and citizens.
“As trade unionists, our concern is always for the working class and the vulnerable. Sanctions and external pressures often impact ordinary workers the most — limiting access to essential goods, services, and opportunities.
“The TUC reaffirms its unwavering solidarity with the workers and people of Cuba in their legitimate aspirations for peace, economic stability, and national development,” he said.
In his remarks, the Senior Assistant General Secretary in the Research Department of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), James Imoyera, criticised the continued, unjustified inclusion of Cuba on the U.S. “State Sponsors of Terrorism” list—a spurious designation that chokes the island’s economy and prevents access to vital financial systems describing it as not just a policy; but a collective punishment.
“We demand the immediate and unconditional lifting of the U.S. blockade. We call for an end to the smear campaigns against Cuba’s international medical brigades, who have saved countless lives across the globe”.
He also called for removal of Cuba from the terriolism list. Lastly, we highlight and recognize the bravery of the Cuban people in overcoming economic hardship.
Meanwhile, the Cuban Ambassador, Miriam Morales Palmero, urged supporters to expand advocacy efforts for Cuba across various platforms, including trade unions, academic institutions, youth groups, community organisations and the media.
She laued Nigeria stating that Nigerians all demonstrate that Africa and the Caribbean share not only a history of resistance, but a struggling present for an international order more just and equitable.
“We want you also to know that Cuba will never renounce to its independence, to its social model sovereignly elected, neither to its solidarity vocation with the peoples of the world,” she said.
