At about 8.30pm on Wednesday, heavily armed security operatives raided National Secretariat of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC in Central Business District, Abuja.
AIT.live gathered that the security operatives, some from the Nigeria Police Force, some wearing black tee-shirts presumably from the Department of State Services, DSS, and others on outright mufti stormed the 10th Floor of the Labour House and arrested the security man on duty and took him to the second floor where he was asked to produce the keys to the offices.
Eye withness account says, when he told them that he had no such keys on him, they broke into the floor and ransacked the bookshop on the 2nd floor, carting away hundreds of books and other publications.
According to a statement signed by NLC Head of Information, Benson Upah, the armed security operatives claimed that they were looking for seditious materials used for the #EndBadGoveranance protest.
The statement said that the NLC condemns in its entirety the new low in security operations in rhe country, noting that the armed operatives showed no legal document permitting them to raid the premises of the NLC in the ungodly hours of the night, stressing that even in the dark days of military rule, Labour offices were never invaded and ransacked by security agents.
The NLC continued that these days have become very sad indeed for Nigeria’s democracy. The NLC said it vehemently condemned the high-handed manner that security agents manhandled protesters in many parts of the country and the needless bloodshed that ensued as well as the sweeping mass arrests of those perceived to have led the protest while frowning at the reckless use of “treason” to describe the protest and demand for moderation.
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“But, what it did not see coming was the invasion of the Labour House by masked and heavily armed security operatives hours later”. The NLC says further that the action violates democratic rights, freedom of speech and association and the unimpeachable right of citizens to protest peacefully on any issue they feel strongly about, as it calls on the international community to take note of what it describes as the deterioration of democratic principles in the bid to turn Nigeria into a police state.
The NLC says given the state of things, it has directed all its staff to stay away from the Labour House for now until it is certain that there are no incriminating materials or harmful substances dropped in its offices by the invading operatives.
Also, it says in order to allay fears, it demands an international inquiry into the invasion of its facility.
In addition, the NLC demands the immediate withdrawal of security agents from the premises of the Labour House, Abuja, the return of all the books and materials carted away by the invading security operatives, unfailingly to where they were taken from before the end of work on Thursday, August 8.
AIT.live recalls that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment has asked the NLC to hands off Labour Party, as the Trade Union Dispute Act as amended, does not allow unions to use their time and resources in political activities.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
