Air Peace Denies Involvement in NLC Ajaero’s Arrest, Says DSS Acted Retrospectively

The recent confrontation between Comrade Joe Ajaero, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), and the Department of State Services (DSS) reached a critical point on Monday, September 9, 2024, when Ajaero was arrested and detained at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.

Comrade Ajaero was en route to a Trade Union Congress event in the United Kingdom when DSS officers apprehended him, detained him for hours, and subsequently released him on administrative bail around 11 PM after intense questioning. His international passport was confiscated.

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During his detention, Ajaero stated that DSS and police officers interrogated him primarily about the nationwide protests against bad governance in August, often tagged as #EndBadGovernance. Before his release, Ajaero and the NLC Secretary General were summoned to appear before the police for further questioning later in the month.

The specific petition that led to Ajaero’s detention remains unclear. However, it has surfaced that Air Peace, a popular Nigerian airline, had filed a petition against him over a year ago, which was later withdrawn. Despite the withdrawal, the DSS reportedly may have acted on the petition retrospectively, ignoring its retraction.

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In response to the growing public speculation, Air Peace spokesperson Mr. Omotade Makinwa issued a statement clarifying the airline’s position. He emphasized that Air Peace had no involvement in the current situation of the NLC President, reiterating that the airline had submitted and subsequently withdrawn the petition over a year ago, and expressed concern over the negative implications of the recent developments.
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According to Makinwa’s statement read in part, “Air Peace Airline expresses deep concern over recent media reports regarding the arrest of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in connection to a petition filed by the airline in September 2023. This development, which has led to negative publicity, does not reflect the current relationship between Air Peace and the NLC.

“It is important to clarify the events leading up to the petition. On May 3, 2023, the NLC disrupted Air Peace operations as part of a broader conflict with the Imo State Government. Although Air Peace had no involvement in the dispute between the NLC and the Imo State Government, our airline was unfortunately used as a tool to exert pressure on the government. This unlawful disruption of our services caused significant financial losses and impacted the travel plans of many Nigerians across multiple states.

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“In response to this disruption, Air Peace’s legal team submitted a formal petition against the NLC to the Nigerian Police. Despite our repeated efforts to follow up on the petition, the police failed to take prompt action.”

However, the airline added that “over a year later, the Nigerian Police have chosen to act on the original petition, which has now led to the alleged arrest of the NLC president.”

Makinwa said, “Before this arrest, the airline and the NLC had already reached an amicable resolution, and Air Peace had withdrawn its petition, allowing a positive working relationship to resume between the two organizations.”