Labour Leader Reportedly 'Kidnapped' by Police in Nasarawa

Vice Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Kogi State chapter and an official of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), Eleojo Opaluwa was on August 4, 2024 reportedly abducted by operatives of the Nigeria Police Force's Intelligence Response Team (IRT) in Mararaba, Nasarawa State.

According to report, Opaluwa received a call around 2 p.m. that day and left his family to meet the caller at a specified location in Mararaba. Eyewitnesses confirmed that he was taken away by security personnel in a Hilux and a Golf vehicle.

The NUEE, through its acting General Secretary Dominic Igwebike, has raised alarms over Opaluwa's safety, stating, "We were reliably informed that about 2 p.m., on August 4, 2024, Opaluwa, who is a staff of NUEE, left his house in Maraba, Nasarawa State, and he has not returned to his home since then."

Despite efforts to contact him via phone and visits to local police stations, his whereabouts remain unknown. The family reported him missing to the Mararaba Police Station, but the police have yet to declare him missing officially.

Further complicating matters, on the same day at around 5 p.m., security personnel visited the NUEE office in Area 8 Garki, inquiring about Opaluwa's presence.

On August 8, 2024, Opaluwa was briefly brought to his office by security officers to search the premises but was denied any communication with his colleagues before being taken away again.

The NUEE has demanded Opaluwa's immediate release, condemning his detention as a "flagrant abuse of his rights as a citizen of Nigeria." They have also involved legal counsel to write to the National Security Adviser to the President, highlighting the violation of Opaluwa's rights, including denial of access to his lawyer, family, and freedom of movement.