The way the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) currently choose to interpret its relationship with state institutions that possess automatic licenses to bear arms is that there is an effort going on on the other side seeking to trump workers’ right to dissent which is being seen as a ground for massive nationwide protest never seen before.

A case in point is the invitation by the Nigeria Police Force asking the labour union President, Joe Ajaero to appear before it on Tuesday, 20 August 2024 by 10:00 a.m. This is based on a letter addressed to the recipient by Assistant Police Commissioner ACP Adamu Muazu on behalf of the force’s Intelligence Response Team.

This office is investigating a case of Criminal Conspiracy, Terrorism Financing, Treasonable Felony, Subversion, and Cybercrime in which you have been implicated, the letter partly reads. Failure to attend the meeting at the set time would lead to the police seeking out a warrant of arrest, the third point in the correspondence mentioned.

With probably just 24 hours to prepare, Comrade Joe Ajaero and the Nigeria Labour Congress declined the invitation through their solicitors Falana & Falana Chambers. Instead of a rushed appearance, a different date was proposed by the summoned and it was either Wednesday 28 August or the following day according to a clerical error noticed in the reply to the police.

Subsequently, the chamber, citing Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria as amended which emphasises a citizen’s right to a fair hearing, has requested the details and nature of the allegations which its client is being asked to answer questions.

At the moment, there is a lag and it has been going on since the lawyer’s response to the police’s Intelligence Response Team yesterday. During the same time frame, there have been criticisms from outside Nigeria. One worthy of note is the condemnation by the Brussels in Belgium-based International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).

Pushing back

Through an address to the Inspector General of Police Mr Kayode Egbetokun by ITUC’s Africa region General Secretary Akhator Joel Afolabi Odigie and had both the Economic Community of West African States preceded by the President of Nigeria Bola Tinubu in copy, the confederation expects immediate cessation of all forms of intimidation and harassment against trade union leaders and their members in order not to tarnish the country’s reputation and reverse past labour administration reforms.

Pictures showing in black and white trace the standoff between the police and the NLC to 10 days of the #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protest which sort of quietly fizzled out as the organisers gradually lost control of the movement.

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The protest, marching out in a confederation manner did not appoint a central leader to take charge, so the outcomes differed all across the country, most especially in the north like Kano and Kaduna where deaths were recorded.

With the protest having dried out by Tuesday 13 August, President Bola Tinubu called his first National Council of State meeting which had two of his predecessors Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari in attendance.

A police raid of the NLC’s Labour House in the Federal Capital Territory had taken place six days before this, and since then the trust between workers and the security agency had been strained.

Even though Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi later explained the 7^th of August ransacking of the Labour House two days after it happened as a bid to arrest a suspect, a foreign national implicated in numerous criminal activities across Nigeria and other African countries, NLC kept at their suspicion.

The police letter asking Comrade Joe Ajaero to appear for a terrorism-related interview meant to be held yesterday has now heightened the trade union’s concern. It has led to the NLC through Deputy President Comrade Minjibir Ado telling journalists on the initial interview date: We resolve that in [the] event our congress president was arrested or detained at any moment, we put our affiliates on red alert to mobilise our membership across the country that all workers in this country should down tool their services.

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Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.