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The Presidency has said the accusations of human rights violations by the Trade Union Congress in the United Kingdom against Nigeria are “unfounded and based on a misunderstanding” of the ongoing saga involving the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero.
This followed comments by the UK TUC’s General Secretary, Paul Nowak, at the annual conference of Britain’s trade unions on Tuesday.
Nowak had condemned the Nigerian government over Monday’s arrest and detention of Ajaero.
The UK TUC demanded an immediate halt to what it described as the government’s crackdown on labour leaders.
Its call came just 24 hours after operatives of the Department of State Services arrested Ajaero at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, who was on his way to the United Kingdom for the TUC conference.
The NLC had accused the DSS of arresting Ajaero without a warrant. He was later released after multiple calls for his freedom.
However, the Presidency argued that the government did not arrest the labour leader without cause, saying he had disregarded an invitation from the agency.
A statement signed Tuesday evening by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, read, “Ajaero, who probably considers himself above the law, was slated to speak at the same conference where the UK TUC leader attacked Nigeria. His actions, however, have serious consequences, as no one is above the law in Nigeria.
“Clearly, under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As Amended), no person is above the summons of law enforcement agencies and lawful investigation. Like the United Kingdom and other civilised nations, Nigeria is a country of law governed by the Constitution.”
“We are not aware that there is anyone in the United Kingdom or anywhere in Europe and the United States, trade union leaders inclusive, who will flagrantly ignore the invitation or summons of MI5 or Scotland Yard or treat the FBI with the level of disdain Mr Ajaero has subjected law enforcement agencies in Nigeria.”
The statement titled, ‘Nigeria, a country governed by law categorically denies any human rights abuse,’ cited the United States of America, where former President Donald Trump has been the subject of numerous investigations and prosecutions in courts in several states since he left office.
It also said Mr. Hunter Biden, son of the US President, has been the subject of a lawful investigation by the FBI.
“The Trade Union Congress in the United Kingdom opened its conference today in London, with its leader making false claims about human rights abuses and violations in Nigeria.
“The Nigerian government was wrongly and falsely accused of rights abuse because the NLC President, Joe Ajaero, was stopped from travelling abroad after he snubbed the invitation of a law enforcement agency conducting an ongoing investigation.
“We, therefore, reject any notion and allusion to human rights violations in Nigeria. The accusations made by the Trade Union Congress in the United Kingdom are, thus, unfounded and based on a misunderstanding of the situation,” said Onanuga.
He argued that the Nigerian Government is being led by a pro-democracy activist president who will do everything to protect civil liberties and the rights of all citizens.
“There is no adversarial relationship between the Labour Movement in Nigeria and the government,” he added.
Onanuga reasoned that while labour unions and the government may not always agree on policy direction, the government has consistently shown readiness to engage on any issue with labour despite the latter’s political partisanship.
He continued, “Contrary to the erroneous impression being created, the invitation extended by the Department of State Services to Mr. Ajaero has nothing to do with his role as the President of NLC.
“As a responsible citizen of Nigeria, Mr Ajaero should honour any invitation from our security agencies and resolve any issues that may arise during the investigation instead of stirring adverse public opinion against the security agencies.”
The Presidency said it is worth reminding Nigerians and the global community that the federal government recognises that the labour movement exists to protect and defend the interests of its members.
The statement said is also worth noting that Labour, in most cases, only advances ideological positions that fly in the face of economic realities.
However, it accused Nigeria’s labour unions of compromising the well-being of citizens.
“Many ideological stances of the labour unions in Nigeria in the past have only stunted the economic growth and development of the country and even compromised the material well-being of the workers and the poor people they protect.
“A case in point was the strong opposition of the NLC and TUC to the sale of Port-Harcourt and Kaduna Refineries to Bluestar Consortium, promoted in 2007 by Aliko Dangote and Femi Otedola, during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
“Seventeen years after the labour movement forced the successor government of Umar Yar’ Adua to cancel the sale of the two refineries, none of the four government-owned refineries worked,” it stated.
The Presidency said in the obverse Mr Aliko Dangote, one of the promoters of Bluestar, has built the largest single-train refinery in the world.
“In a twist of fate, the same Labour Movement that fiercely opposed Dangote from taking over the two refineries in 2007 hailed him on completing his 650,000-bpd refinery in Lagos,” it observed.
Onanuga stated that the Tinubu administration will continue to promote the best economic interest of Nigerians despite the current challenges.
“It will also continue to pursue policies and programmes that will expand national economic output and create prosperity for our citizens,” the statement concluded.
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