The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has condemned the repeated arrest and detention of human rights activist Omoyele Sowore, warning that such actions could signal a return to dictatorship where dissent is suppressed.
NLC President, Joe Ajaero, described Sowore as a “moral compass” whose harassment reflected a slide toward authoritarianism, urging the government to uphold constitutional rights to freedom of speech and association.
In a statement signed by Ajaero, the union said, “We strongly condemn the frequent arrest and long spells in detention of Sowore, a renowned civil rights activist. It is all the more unacceptable if he was injured in the course of his arrest, as it is being alleged.
He also warned that the continued repression of activists would endanger the rights of all Nigerians.
“If the state can arbitrarily detain Sowore today, no journalist, no trade unionist, no activist, and no ordinary citizen is safe tomorrow.
”We cannot allow Nigeria to slide back into the dark days of dictatorship, where fear replaces freedom and dissent is met with brute force, ” he added.
The NLC demands Sowore’s immediate and unconditional release.
Sowore, the convener of the #RevolutionNow protest, was reportedly detained after honouring an invitation from the police and allegedly sustained injuries during an attempt by police officers to transfer him from his detention cell to court.
Amnesty International had claimed that Sowore was assaulted by officers of the Force Intelligence Department (FID) and taken to an undisclosed location in Abuja, sustaining severe injuries.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar also condemned the arrest, describing it as a “shameful abuse of power” and emphasising that Sowore’s only offense was speaking out against injustice, nepotism, and misrule.
