The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has advised the Federal Government and Nigeria Police Force (NPF) to summon courage and apologise for the invasion at its headquarters or risk an industrial action or other options open to Congress to express its dissatisfaction.
Addressing newsmen on Thursday in Abuja, NLC’s Head of Information and Public Affairs, Benson Upah, expressed concerns that not even during the military dictatorial rule in the country was premises of the NLC ever raided.
Questioning why the police visited the 10th floor during the raid carried out at an unholy hour, Congress while insisting the explanations by the police has consistently failed to add up, demanded the police presents the acclaimed legal documents from a court of jurisdiction permitting the raid.
He said: “Beside government’s dishonourable silence on our patriotic and well-thought-out demands, the police have since come out to make further comments on the raid instead of an apology. These comments are deserving of our response.
“A statement signed by ACP Olumumuyiwa Adejobi claims that the raid had “no connection with the NLC secretariat, staff, or leadership but a prime criminal suspect in an on-going investigation traced to a shop within the building” which they claimed was on the 2nd floor.
“The police in subsequent media interviews said the suspect is “an international terrorist” with a long history of destabilization of nations including Sudan. The police made other wild and unsubstantiated claims.
“We find the claims contradictory, self-serving and face-saving and intended to cover up their blunders. What were the security personnel doing on the 10th floor when the shop they were after was on the 2nd floor?
“They said they were after this “international crook of foreign descent” and yet came hours after offices had closed. Between the materials they took away and the terrorist, which had more value?
“If the police truly had credible intelligence and if Congress was not their target, what was wrong in taking the leadership of Congress into confidence? And if they felt that would jeopardise the operation, couldn’t they have confided in the leadership at H-hour?
“The police now claim they had necessary legal documents for the raid. We challenge the police to tender those court documents. We pray they are not contrived or procured documents after the act of invasion.”
While calling on the Federal Government and police not to rope Congress into what it knows nothing about, the NLC demanded proof of an alleged link with alleged acts of international terrorism, adding it was not aware of any terrorist within its midst.
“On the so-called international terrorist, for how long did they know of his or her existence? Shouldn’t we Nigerians hold the security personnel accountable for letting the suspect operate with carefree abandon?
“And if they just knew about this dangerous terrorist, wouldn’t this constitute a major intelligence failure on the part of the police?
“We are not aware of any terrorist in our midst. However, if government knows of one it should come out with facts and proof it is sure of instead of making the country the butt of jokes in the international circuit. We challenge the police to show proof of our relationship (landlord-tenant or otherwise) with this alleged terrorist.
“We continue to demand for an apology from the police and federal government for the unlawful raid of our headquarters.
“There’s a lot of honour and dignity in saying I’m sorry when you’re wrong. In light of this we will advise the federal government and Nigeria police and those who came with them to show the requisite courage to say we are sorry. In the event they do not do that, there are options open to us and we are at liberty of using any of them including withholding our services.”
The NLC urged federal government to desist from playing on the intelligence of Nigerians by attempting to divert their attention from the real issues that still stare Nigerians in the face, especially the economic policies that have continued to unleash hardship on the people.
The NLC while advising the federal government to put an end to the ongoing alleged hybrid war against Congress, warned that government’s quest to impose a two years tenure on labour leaders was a gross interference in the internal running of the trade unions in violation of the corpus of Labour Law and ILO Conventions.
Congress warned that should such law be imposed; it must be complemented by two-year tenure for the office of the President and principal public officers as well.
“We demand that government put an end to this hybrid war against Congress. However, if government feels two years is the best tenure to go, it should be two years for every one including the President of the country.
“We advise the government to stop meddling in the affairs of Labour Party even as it’s destabilization campaign against opposition parties has reached a crescendo. Our actions are guided by the decision of a competent court of jurisdiction. The insincerity of government is so manifest. They claimed they were selling bags of rice at 40k and had to stop when the rice was being resold at 80k. Up till this moment no one has been able to tell us where rice was sold at 40k.”
Congress further insisted that, “even though we are the owners of barricades, we did not participate in the End-Hunger protest. Government therefore should not rope us into something we knew nothing about. Accordingly, we ask government to release those in its custody including a NUEE executive Comrade Opalua Eleojo who was arrested at a social spot in Abuja.
“We are entitled to safety and protection. It is also within our right to internationalise this problem. This is not good PR for this country. People are laughing at us.”
