Aremson (1960-2025): Let the struggle continue

Our Comrade Abiodun Aremu aka Aremson – proletarian per adoption, energetic class fighter, the never get-tired Pan-Africanist socialist and decades-long barricade commander is gone.

I have read so many moving tributes on Comrade Abiodun Aremu and it’s so easy to conclude that Aremson came, saw and conquered many battles of life: political and personal.

There are three major parts of Comrade Aremson that I would like to touch in this tribute.

Aremson – irrepressible and irreplaceable…

I watched Comrade Aremu, closely for almost two decades, as co-activists in Joint Action Front (JAF), to appreciate the rarity of the Aremson’s personality and his somehow irreplaceable character in the leadership of the organization. Many à times, some comrades in JAF had put the poser of who can take over from Aremson as the secretary of the organization if circumstances warrant this but the answer had recurrently been: no ready-made material available to succeed him as Secretary of JAF. This is because of the uniqueness of the comrade for that role. For an example, it’s a consensus that nobody get close to understood the nuances of going round our recurrent criticism of our partners – the trade unions’ high echelons as Aremson. Nobody, except perhaps engaged revolutionary full-timers made it fully prepared to the protests’ ground at earliest possible time like Comrade Aremson, in spite of the very far distance of his abode to the protest centre axis. Similarly, none would independently achieve a lot in the name of JAF, even when there were strained resources in the secretariat, as he would get it done.

Hence it wasn’t a surprise that Comrade Aremu remained the Secretary of JAF (pro-Labour Left coalition of organizations with common socialist aspirations) for more than a decade till he breathed his final at close to dusk on 12 October 2025.

One can only imagine the vacuum that his sudden exit would creates in other organizations that he anchored. Especially, the likes of Kolagbogi Memorial Foundation and Amical Cabral Ideology Classes.

Aremson’s tenacity

One other positive personality trait that I envied in Comrade Aremu is his tenacity and acting serious and firmly on all his concerns. Aremson was an uncommonly bold comrade. Always ready to lead the struggle from the front fearlessly at personal risk.

I recall specifically the role he played in the protest march in the politically-defining anti-fuel subsidy removal protests and Labour Strike in January 2012, which was signalled first by JAF Protesters in Lagos and part-prompting the Labour Leaders to declare a national strike action. Even when NLC -TUC chickened out of the strike action commenced to the annoyance of their civil society organization-partners led by JAF, Aremson was in the lead to continue the protests in Lagos. A protest that was confronted mercilessly by then President Jonathan-drafted soldiers and policemen in the ensued battle on the streets.

Indeed if for nothing, that protest which continued after NLC-TUC strike called-off, signalled a message from JAF to the Labour leadership that even when we start a struggle together on the part of mutual progress, for the good of the working class and other poor masses, the progressive CSOs are not obliged to extinguish the flame of struggle even when the leadership of Labour at the centres backtracked unceremoniously from the path of progress.

Another thing worthy of mentioned is that Baba Aremson (as some of us fondly called him) took any tasks he handled to final execution with whatever it takes. Including seeking funds to execute them from uneasy-to-contrived sources; many a times getting leaflets and political banners printed at short notices.

Personal recollections

Two things that is particularly touchy for me from Comrade Abiodun Aremu which easily comes to my mind I would share here.

Some 10years ago, I recalled Comrade Aremson putting out an unusual concern about comrades’ health. An issue he brought up as part of AoB at one JAF’s meeting and specifically addressed to me and generally to others in the house. He passionately made an appeal that we put in place a comprehensive medical checkup program that comrades can benefit from, even at a cost, so as to prevent avoidable morbidities and fatalities.

Unfortunately, other challenges made it impossible for Aremson’s appeal to come to fruition. And this brought a feeling of guilt here, wondering if the appeal has been heeded, perhaps we could have discovered something in his systems that would had prevented his initial health challenges and those of other comrades who passed on before him. Just wondering.

Another thing, my last physical encounter with Baba Aremson is worthy of note here. That was 05 April 2025 at the JAF Symposium on the State of the Nation hosted at the International Press Centre, Ogba, Ikeja, Lagos.

I practically crawled from my sickbed to the event which brought comrades from far and near. There I saw Aremson, the first time after he had stroke the year before. He was happy to see me as I was to see him in person, not withstanding my follow-up on him since the illness. For me, seeing Aremson that day was another revelation of the internalized energetic being that Aremson was made of. Even with the limitations and deficits in the locomotor functions , he came all the way from his house, not in his vehicle, unaccompanied and unaided. That day I had a cautious optimism about his state of health and it was even stranger and comforting that Aremson was more particular about my own health condition that what I made of his. That compassion from him that day made an enduring impression on me. Unfortunately I promised to visit him in his house within the year but that was not to be until his death.

Aremson – the final battle

For some, the path to death comes even with no stress to the point of death. But for Aremson it came battle-like. First he had the first episode of cerebrovascular accident (stroke) early last year but he survived and was soon on his feet again, even made a recuperation trip to his adopted ancestral home ala Cuba, though with some locomotor deficits. Then he had another CVA (stroke) the following year, yet he rose.

But to the last and final accident – the road traffic accident, occasioned by a hit and run vehicle, he fell permanently with the bang.

Perhaps the serial deficits from the CVAs made it more difficult for him to avoid the last event leading to his death; this is a deduction we may never affirm.

Anyhow the deed is done. Death finally came.

But truth be told: for all human beings, the final battle is an inevitable loss, death would conquered. It is what it is; we live to die someday, a day that would be defined retroactively as the last day of our life.

In the end, what matters is to live for a just and justifiable cause, touching lives and promoting a course of action for common good now and for generations after. On this it was “A” grade for Comrade Aremson.

For his sake, we must rededicate ourselves to rekindle the struggle for egalitarian society, for our common good, for the economically and politically oppressed.

We must resharpened our political tools, appreciate common grounds and organise in solidarity against the reigning philosophy of individual bestial greed that pervades and reigns supreme in our country and global capitalist society.

Aremson may be dead but his memories remain enduring in our minds. He thus lives on.

For Baba Aremson – our rededication…