The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has stated that Joe Ajaero, its president, is in extremely critical health and may need to travel overseas for a thorough medical examination.
On Wednesday in Owerri, the capital of Imo State, he was allegedly beaten, brutalised, and battered by police officers and other state agents.
Along with other labour leaders, suspected state agents and security personnel descended on Ajaero, smashing cars, injuring people, and taking cell phones, cash, and ATM cards, among other valuables, from labour leaders and others who had gathered at the NLC State secretariat to start a planned protest over unresolved labour issues.
Speaking on the situation, the chief of staff and assistant general secretary of the NLC, Chris Onyeka, during a media briefing on Thursday, bemoaning the worsening of his health and his inability to speak, adding that he nearly passed out the previous night.
“The Congress President is in a very critical condition. He is so weak and can hardly talk. He almost passed out last night. The Congress is considering flying him abroad for full medical examination. There is high apprehension and fear that he might have been injected with substance.
“Like you may have seen, he was brutally beaten, brutalized and battered in addition to confiscating his phones, monies and others personal belongings. We have suspended the action in Imo State because besides the President, other Labour leaders suffered similar fate.
“They need to take care of themselves and recover from the injuries inflicted on them by agents of the state government including operatives of the Imo State Police Command,” Onyeka noted.
