The management of Air Peace Airlines has distanced itself from the petition allegedly used to arrest the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, by the Department of State Security (DSS) on Monday.
Air Peace airline, in a press statement made available to LEADERSHIP by its Spokesman, Omotade Makinwa, however, acknowledged that it submitted a petition against the NLC leader to the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) in September 2023, it said the two parties have resolved the matter since and the petition withdrawn.
The Airline expressed surprise to the sudden arrest of the NLC president after the Police had failed to take prompt action against him despite repeated follow-ups on the petition in 2023.
“Air Peace Airline expresses deep concern over recent media reports regarding the arrest of the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in connection to a petition filed by the airline in September 2023. This development, which has led to negative publicity, does not reflect the current relationship between Air Peace and the NLC.
“It is important to clarify the events leading up to the petition. On the 3rd of May, 2023, the NLC disrupted Air Peace operations as part of a broader conflict with the Imo State government. Although Air Peace had no involvement in the dispute between the NLC and the Imo State government, our airline was unfortunately used as a tool to exert pressure on the government. This unlawful disruption of our services caused significant financial losses and impacted the travel plans of many Nigerians across multiple states.
“In response to this disruption, Air Peace’s legal team submitted a formal petition against the NLC to the Nigerian Police. Despite our repeated efforts to follow up on the petition, the Police failed to take prompt action,” the Airlines’ spokesperson stated.
Air Peace reiterated: “However, over a year later, the Nigerian Police have chosen to act on the original petition, which has now led to the alleged arrest of the NLC president. Prior to this arrest, the airline and the NLC had already reached an amicable resolution, and Air Peace had withdrawn its petition, allowing a positive working relationship to resume between the two organizations.”
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