Air Peace speaks on Ajaero’s arrest

The Management of Air Peace Airlines has expressed concerns over the alleged involvement in the recent arrest of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, by Nigeria’s secret police, SSS, on Monday.

On Monday, PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mr Ajaero was arrested at the airport in Abuja while trying to catch a flight to the United Kingdom to attend an event of the World Trade Union Congress (WTUC).

The detention of the NLC leader has sparked widespread criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, including from Amnesty International, which called for his unconditional release on Monday.

After about 15 hours of detention, Mr. Ajaero was eventually released late Monday to his lawyer, Abubakar Marshall of Falana and Falana Chambers.

Mr Ajaero’s arrest by the SSS marks the latest episode in NLC’s ongoing battle with the Nigerian government. Before Monday’s incident, the police had invited him on two occasions for questioning related to an investigation involving Andrew Wynne, a 70-year-old British socialist who operates a bookshop within the NLC’s headquarters in Abuja. The police alleged that Mr Wynne, linked to the organisers of last month’s #EndBadGovernance protests, was plotting to overthrow President Tinubu and incite chaos. They have since declared him a wanted person.

In addition, while Mr Ajaero was in SSS custody on Monday, some media reports expanded the case against him to include a petition filed by Air Peace about a year ago, alleging that he led NLC to disrupt the airline’s operations.

Air Peace expresses worry over reigniting petition

In response, Air Peace, in a statement issued Monday by its spokesperson, Omotade Makinwa, debunked assertions of having any live case of Mr Ajaero. The airline argued that Mr Ajaero’s arrest does not “reflect the current relationship between Air Peace and the NLC.”

“Air Peace Airline expresses deep concern over recent media reports regarding the arrest of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in connection to a petition filed by the airline in September 2023. This development, which has led to negative publicity, does not reflect the current relationship between Air Peace and the NLC,” the statement said.

“It is important to clarify the events leading up to the petition. On 3 May 2023, the NLC disrupted Air Peace operations as part of a broader conflict with the Imo State Government. Although Air Peace had no involvement in the dispute between the NLC and the Imo State Government, our airline was unfortunately used as a tool to exert pressure on the government.”

It added that the unlawful disruption of its services caused significant financial losses and impacted the travel plans of many Nigerians across multiple states.

According to the statement, in response to the disruption, Air Peace’s legal team submitted a formal petition against the NLC to the Nigerian Police.

However, it said despite repeated efforts to follow up on the petition, the police failed to take prompt action.

“Over a year later, the Nigerian Police have chosen to act on the original petition, which has now led to the alleged arrest of the NLC president,” Air Peace said.

“Before this arrest, the airline and the NLC had already reached an amicable resolution, and Air Peace had withdrawn its petition, allowing a positive working relationship to resume between the two organisations,” the statement said.

Mr Wynne, who seems to be central to the case against Mr Ajaero, has dismissed the treason allegations levelled against him. The socialist, who appears to have left Nigeria, insists that participating in protests does not constitute treason, contrary to the government’s claims.