Why DSS arrested Nigeria Labour Congress president, Joe Ajaero
The president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, was arrested by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Monday.
He was arrested as he was preparing to board a flight to the United Kingdom for an official assignment related to attending a conference organized by the Trade Union Congress (TUC).
While specific details regarding the reasons for Ajaero’s arrest remain unclear, it has been reported that he is being investigated for serious allegations, including terrorism financing. The information provided indicates that following his arrest, Ajaero was handed over to the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) for further questioning.
This arrest comes after a series of interactions between Ajaero and security agencies.
A DSS source told Online News that there was nothing to his arrest beyond the existing investigations.
On August 20, he had honored an invitation from the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) of the Nigerian Police Force. This invitation followed a summons issued on August 19, which warned him of potential arrest if he failed to comply. During this period, Ajaero was facing allegations that included criminal conspiracy, terrorism financing, treasonable felony, subversion, and cybercrime.
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Despite initially communicating through his legal representative, human rights lawyer Femi Falana (SAN), about his inability to attend on the specified date, Ajaero later appeared at the Force Headquarters on August 29 with Falana and other legal representatives to address these accusations.
Just a day after this appearance before police authorities, another summons was issued by the police requiring both Ajaero and NLC General Secretary Emma Ugboaja to appear at Force Headquarters on September 5.
This second summons involved allegations concerning criminal intimidation and conduct likely to cause a breach of public peace.
As such, Joe Ajaero’s recent arrest appears to be part of ongoing investigations into various serious allegations against him and reflects heightened scrutiny from security agencies regarding his activities as NLC president.
