…Hails late activist’s role in Nigeria’s struggle for Justice

By Victor Ahiuma-Young 

The Director-General, Issa Aremu, alongside the management and staff of the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies, MINILS, has expressed deep sorrow over the death of renowned activist and labour icon, Comrade Abiodun Aremu, commonly known as Aremson.

In a condolence message, MINILS described the late Comrade Aremu as a towering figure in Nigeria’s labour and civil society movements, whose remarkable contributions to the struggles for workers’ rights, democracy, and social justice left an indelible mark on the nation.

The Director-General,  Issa Aremu, recalled with nostalgia the long-standing collaboration between MINILS and the Amilcar Cabral Ideological School (ACIS), which the late Aremu championed, describing him as “a loyal friend of the Institute who will be sorely missed.”

He also noted that despite his recent illness, Aremu’s enduring spirit of struggle and perseverance remained alive until his passing.

According to Aremu, the deceased was a star member of the Cuba–Africa Friendship Association, and featured prominently at the Fidel Castro Centenary Event held in Abuja on September 18, 2025, which had former President Olusegun Obasanjo as guest speaker and was attended by ambassadors and friends of Cuba.

The MINILS Director-General further recalled that Comrade Abiodun was among the early well-wishers who congratulated him on his reappointment by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in May 2025. In his congratulatory message, the late activist had commended Issa Aremu’s “innovative leadership and commitment to advancing labour studies in Nigeria,” noting the Institute’s growing relevance to the working class.

“Comrade Aremu’s death has created a huge vacuum in his family, among his friends, and within the larger labour movement,” the statement added.

On behalf of the entire MINILS community, the Director-General extended heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased, praying that God grants them the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.