The Nigerian government has rejected all notions and allusions to human rights violations in the country, affirming that no citizen of Nigeria is above the law.
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga stated this in a statement issued on Tuesday titled; ‘Nigeria, A Country Governed By Law’, Categorically Denies Any Human Rights Abuse.
Condemning the false claims made by the leader of the UK Trade Union Congress in the United Kingdom, Mr. Onanuga who affirmed that Nigeria is a Sovereign State governed by law and Constitution, quoted the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (As Amended), which stated that no person is above the summons of law enforcement agencies and lawful investigation.
The Presidential aide emphasised that 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.
He reminded Nigerians and the global community that the federal gover
nment recognises that the labour movement exists to protect and defend the interests of its members.
Further reacting to false claims made about Nigeria at the opening of the Conference of the United Kingdom Trade Union Congress, Mr. Onanuga stated: ‘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 traveling 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 la
w enforcement agencies and lawful investigation. Like the United Kingdom and other civilized 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.’ Mr Onanuga a
dded.
The Special Adviser to the President further clarified that no adversarial relationship existed 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.’
In addition, Mr. Onanuga added that contrary to the narration presented to the members of the public, 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.
‘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 Presidential aide added.
Mr. Onanuga added that President Tinubu’
s administration will continue to promote the best economic interests of Nigerians despite the current challenges.
He further stated that President Tinubu would continue to pursue policies and programmes that would expand national economic output and create prosperity for the citizens.
Source: Voice of Nigeria