President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Comrade Joe Ajaero has been allegedly arrested by operatives of the Nigerian Police Force.
Ajaero was arrested Wednesday, during an ongoing protest in Imo state where miscreants suddenly launched an attack on members of the Labour Union who were peacefully protesting.
According to reports, the unprovoked miscreants smashed several vehicles and inflicted wounds on labour members.
While the whereabouts of the NLC President is unknown, it was gathered that heavily armed security personnel took him away.
Recall that the arrested NLC president had earlier announced that it would begin protests in Imo State from November 1 over alleged violation and abuse of rights and privileges of workers by the State government.
Ajaero who made the disclosure was quoted as saying, “NLC was deeply concerned about the persistent and egregious violations of the rights and privileges of workers in Imo State by the State Government.”
“Despite our repeated efforts to engage in constructive dialogue and reach amicable agreements, the Imo State Government has become a habitual and serial breaker of these agreements, continuing to trample on the rights of workers in the state.
“As a result, we are left with no choice but to embark on mass protests and industrial actions beginning on the 1st day of November, 2023.
“This is to demonstrate our outrage and stop the continuing violation of the rights and privileges of workers in the state.”
The NLC president also stated that the protest was imperative as the government of the state had refused to implement previous agreements.
According to him, “the government has repeatedly reneged on agreements, most notably the accord reached on January 9th, 2021, between the Government and Organised Labour.
“On outstanding salary arrears, shockingly, some workers have been subjected to a staggering 20 months of unpaid salaries under the unfounded label of ‘ghost workers’.
“Unjust declaration of workers as ghost workers,. Approximately 11,000 hardworking individuals have been unjustly branded as ghost workers, their salaries diverted even while they diligently carried out their duties,” Ajaero said.
The recent development wherein the NLC President’s whereabouts cannot be accounted for has however, caused panic among members of the trade Union.
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