Victor Ezeja
The Department of State Services (DSS) has denied carrying out a raid at the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) national office in Abuja on Wednesday.
The NLC in a statement signed by its spokesperson Benson Upah, said security operatives believed to be from the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force invaded its national secretariat on Wednesday night.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelThe statement said the alleged security operatives arrested a security guard at on duty at the NLC secretariat, forcing him to hand over keys to the offices on the second floor.
When the security guard could not provide the keys, they operatives broke into the second floor, ransacked the bookshop and carted away hundreds of books and other publications.
The labour union condemned the act, saying its national office has never been invaded, even during the darks days of military era.
The statement read “This evening at about 8.30 pm long after the close of work, a troop of heavily armed security operatives invaded the Labour House, Central Business District, Abuja which serves as the National Headquarters and secretariat of the Nigeria Labour Congress.
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“The security operatives, some from the Nigeria Police Force, some wearing black tee-shirts presumably from the Department of State Services and others on outright mufti swooped on the 10th Floor of the NLC and arrested the security operative on duty and then commandeered him to the second floor where he was asked to produce the keys to the offices.
“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. The invading troops claimed that they were looking for seditious materials used for the #EndBadGoveranance protests.
“The Nigeria Labour Congress condemns in its entirety this new low in security operations in Nigeria. The armed security operatives showed no legal document permitting them to invade the premises of the Nigeria Labour Congress in the ungodly hours of the night. Even in the dark days of military rule, NLC secretariats were never invaded and ransacked by security agents. Today is indeed a very sad day for our democracy.”
However, DSS in a statement via its verified X handle on Thursday, said its operatives did not carry out such operation. “Please kindly note that the Service (DSS) did not carry out any operation at the NLC office in Abuja,” DSS wrote on its X handle on Thursday.
This comes after the NLC National Executive Council meeting on Wednesday. In a communiqué released after the meeting signed by the NLC president and general secretary, Joe Ajaero and Emmanuel Ugboaja respectively, the union called for an independent investigation into the killings of protesters, and those found to be responsible should be brought to justice.
The union also demanded the release of all peaceful protesters detained by the government. They also urged the government to engage in meaningful dialogue with representatives of protesters, civil society organizations and other stakeholders to resolves all issue at stake and end the national carnage. “This is to avoid NLC from being compelled to ask its members to stay at home for the safety of their lives,” a part of the communiqué read.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
