Nigeria Police Claim Labour Congress President, Ajaero Was Not Arrested But ‘Taken Into Custody To Protect His Life’

The police have denied arresting the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress ((NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero during a protest in Imo on Wednesday morning.

This was stated in a press statement released by Imo State Command Public Relations Officer, ASP Okoye Henry, explaining that the police presence during the workers’ protest was necessitated due to a subsisting court order which barred the union from holding any demonstration in the state.

SaharaReporters earlier reported that Ajaero was arrested by the police in Owerri, the Imo state capital while organizing a rally to protest against stalled wage payments for workers in the state.

The NLC also confirmed the arrest, saying the police arrested Ajaero when workers started gathering at the state secretariat of the NLC for the protest.

Reacting to this in his statement, the spokesperson for the Imo State police command claimed that Ajaero was picked up for protection and not arrested.

The statement reads: “The Imo State Police Command wishes to clarify some sketchy reports alleging the arrest of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Joe Ajaero, in Owerri.

“It is pertinent to state that the NLC President was in Owerri as part of arrangements of the Congress to mobilise workers for a mega protest rally in the state. In the course of their planning, it was reported that suggestions arose for the lockdown of some essential facilities particularly the airport which led to some workers and other individuals resisting the picketing process leading to scuffles and heated arguments and an eventual attack on the person of the president by a mob.

 

“Upon receiving this report, the Imo Police Command swiftly deployed police operatives to the scene where the Officer in Charge exercised his operational discretion by taking the NLC President into protective custody at the State Command Headquarters to ensure the protection of his life and that he was not lynched in the scuffle that followed. The Commissioner of Police thereafter directed that he should be taken to the Police Medical Services, Owerri, where he would be accorded medical attention as a result of the attack. He has therefore been accorded adequate security cover to proceed on his other legitimate engagements for the day.

 

“It is however necessary to emphasize the existence of a court injunction from the National Industrial Court of Nigeria holden in Owerri with Suit No. NICN/OW/41/2023 dated 27th October, 2023, barring the NLC from holding the intended protest rally in Owerri.

 

“The Commissioner of Police, Imo State Police Command, CP Mohammed Ahmed Barde, psc (+), therefore urges all concerned parties to ensure compliance with the Court directives so as to avoid jeopardizing the current security arrangements on Owerri and other parts of Imo State, even as the State gears up for the forthcoming electioneering process on 11th November 2023.”