Movement of the People

{{Infobox political party

| name = Movement of the People

| native_name =

| colorcode = #00a958

| logo = Logo of the Movement of the People.png

| slogan = Liberation Generation

| country = Nigeria

| abbreviation = MOP

| founded = 1979

| founder = Fela Kuti

| headquarters = Allen 100271, Ikeja

| leader = Seun Anikulapo-Kuti

| ideology = Pan-Africanism{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}
African socialism{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}
Nkrumaism{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}

| position = Left-wing{{citation needed|date=March 2022}}

| website = {{url|https://www.mopnigeria.org/}}

}}

The Movement of the People, commonly abbreviated as MOP or M.O.P, is a Nigerian left-wing pan-African political movement.{{cite news|title=#EndSARS: Seun Kuti Revives Fela's Movement Of The People, Calls For Better Governance|url=https://www.channelstv.com/2020/11/17/endsars-seun-kuti-revives-felas-movement-of-the-people-calling-for-better-governance/|date=17 November 2020|access-date=17 July 2021|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201117131208/https://www.channelstv.com/2020/11/17/endsars-seun-kuti-revives-felas-movement-of-the-people-calling-for-better-governance/|archive-date=17 November 2020}} {{Failed verification|date=March 2022}} The organisation was originally formed by Fela Anikulapo Kuti in 1979 as a political party but quickly became inactive due to Fela's confrontations with the government at the time.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CmBcCAAAQBAJ|title=Fela: Kalakuta Notes |last=Collins |first=John |date=5 June 2015 |publisher=Wesleyan University Press |isbn=9780819575401}} It has since been revived by Fela's youngest son, Seun Kuti in the wake of the Nigerian End SARS protests of October 2020.{{cite news|title=Seun Kuti Relaunches Fela's 'Movement of the People' Political Party|url=https://www.arise.tv/seun-kuti-relaunches-felas-movement-of-the-people-political-party/|date=18 November 2020|access-date=17 July 2021|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201118042100/https://www.arise.tv/seun-kuti-relaunches-felas-movement-of-the-people-political-party/|archive-date=18 November 2020}}

History

In 1979, Fela Kuti formed a political movement, which he called Movement of the People (MOP), to "clean up society like a mop".{{cite magazine |author-first=Lindsay |author-last=Barrett |author-link=Lindsay Barrett |title=Fela Kuti: Chronicle of A Life Foretold |magazine=The Wire |date=September 2011 |orig-date=March 1998 |issue=169 |url=http://www.thewire.co.uk/in-writing/essays/fela-kuti_chronicle-ofa-life-foretold |access-date=2015-06-13}} MOP preached Nkrumahism and Africanism.Fela Kuti: Music is the Weapon. Directors Jean-Jacques Flori and Stephane Tchalgadjieff. 1982. Universal Import. March 2004. In 1979, he nominated himself for president in Nigeria's first elections in decades, but his candidature was refused. Subsequently, Fela stopped engaging in political activities and the party became inactive.

In November 2020, Seun Kuti announced the revival of the organisation and the intention to re-register it as a political party. He said that the organisation was being re-established to serve as an opposition to the country’s elites. During a live press conference, Seun explained that the Movement of the People (MOP) was a coalition of socialist and progressive organisations. In January 2021, Seun informed the press that a formal request had been sent to INEC to register the movement as a political party.{{cite magazine |author-first=Michael |author-last=Bamidele|title=Seun Kuti Set To Register Fela's Political Party "Movement Of The People" |magazine=The Guardian Life |date=2021-01-16 |url=https://guardian.ng/life/seun-kuti-set-to-register-felas-political-party-movement-of-the-people-mop/ |access-date=2021-07-17}}