Police raid: NLC suspects surveillance and hires forensic expert

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has enlisted forensic experts to search its national secretariat in Abuja for potential surveillance devices that may have been planted during a recent police raid, The NLC stated that this forensic security audit is necessary to ensure the safety of its staff and to allow them to return to their offices following the raid.

On July 7, security agents conducted a night operation at the NLC headquarters. According to NLC spokesperson Benson Upah, the agents entered the building around 8:30 pm, detained the security guards, and demanded the keys to the offices on the second floor. Upah described the operatives as a mix of police officers, individuals in black t-shirts presumably from the Department of State Services, and others in plain clothes. They focused their search on the 10th floor before moving to the second floor to obtain the office keys.

The police claimed the raid aimed to uncover incriminating documents related to an international “subversive” figure allegedly threatening Nigeria’s democracy. The NLC, however, has rejected this explanation and is demanding the release of detained members and the return of seized documents.

In response, Chris Onyeka, the NLC’s National Assistant General Secretary, revealed that the union has hired international experts to conduct a comprehensive forensic security audit of the national secretariat. This audit is intended to ensure that no surveillance devices were left behind and to safeguard the premises. Onyeka criticized the police’s explanation for the raid as insufficient and stated that the NLC has demanded an apology from both the Federal Government and the police, which has yet to be issued.