Heavily armed security personnel raided the headquarters of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Abuja on Wedneday, the union has said.
According to the union, the operatives stormed the Labour House, as its headquarters is called, around 8:30 pm, Channels News reports.
“They broke in and ransacked the bookshop on the 2nd floor carting away hundreds of books and other publications,” said a statement by the NLC’s head of Media and Public Relations, Benson Upah.
“The invading troop claimed that they were looking for seditious materials used for the #EndBadGoveranance Protests.”
The NLC is not immediately able to ascertain all the things taken away from its offices.
The raid, which was carried out six days after the #EndBadGovernance protests started, has been condemned by the union. The NLC also demanded the immediate withdrawal of the security operatives from its headquarters.
“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,” the NLC said.
“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.
“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 (NLC).
“The security operatives, some from the Nigeria Police Force, some wearing black T-shirts presumably from the Department of State Services (DSS), and others in outright mufti swooped on the 10th Floor of the NLC House 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 10th floor and ransacked the bookshop on the 2nd floor carting away hundreds of books and other publications. The invading troop 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.”
