Nigerian govt denies human rights abuses despite evidence to the contrary

Despite the arrests and detention of journalists and activists, as well as the killing of protesters by law enforcement officials, the Nigerian government says the incumbent Bola Tinubu administration does not abuse human rights.

The government was responding to criticisms by the Trade Union Congress in the United Kingdom following the arrest and temporary detention of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero.

“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,” Bayo Onanuga, a media aide to President Bola Tinubu, wrote in a Tuesday statement.

Mr Ajaero was arrested on Monday at the Abuja airport and prevented from travelling to the UK for the TUC conference. He was later released on Monday night.

Mr Onanuga argued that Mr Ajaero’s arrest was justified and accused the labour leader of refusing to honour an invitation by law enforcement agencies.

“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,” Mr Onanuga wrote.

He then claimed that there are no human rights violations by the Nigerian government.

“We, therefore, reject any notion and allusion to human rights violations in Nigeria,” he wrote.

However, contrary to Mr Onanuga’s claims, PREMIUM TIMES and other media organisations and human rights groups have documented several cases of human rights abuses by security agencies under the Tinubu administration.

These include the killing of many protesters and passersby during the recent #EndBadGovernance protest as well as the arrest and detention of several journalists and activists.

Details later…

Read Mr Onanuga’s full statement below.

NIGERIA, A COUNTRY GOVERNED BY LAW, CATEGORICALLY DENIES ANY HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSE

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.

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.

In the United States, for example, former President Donald Trump has been the subject of numerous investigations and prosecutions in courts in several states since he left office. Mr. Hunter Biden, son of the President of the United States, has been the subject of a lawful investigation by the FBI.

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.

Besides, 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.

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.

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.

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. What is also worth noting is that Labour, in most cases, only advances ideological positions that fly in the face of economic realities.

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.

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.

The administration of President Tinubu 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.

Bayo Onanuga

Special Adviser to the President

(Information & Strategy)