The police have detained the President of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Tajudeen Baruwa, and 21 others, including three other national officers of the union are currently being detained by the police in Abuja, over alleged criminal conspiracy, culpable homicide, public disturbance, and conduct likely to cause breach of peace.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that on Tuesday, at least one person was killed and several others injured following the chaos that engulfed the Garki area of the FCT during a violent clash between two factions of the NURTW on Sapele Crescent, off Ladoke Akintola Boulevard, Garki II, Abuja.
The FCT Commissioner of Police, Haruna Garba, earlier confirmed the arrest of 23 male suspects and the recovery of three riffles.
Following the incident, the police took into custody the leadership of the union between Tuesday and Wednesday and subsequently moved to the facility of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad, popularly known as abattoir, located in Guzape, Abuja, The Punch reports.
The spokesperson for the FCT Police Command, Josephine Adeh, revealed that the suspects would be charged in court following the conclusion of the police investigation.
“The NURTW President was arrested alongside 21 others. They’re being charged with criminal conspiracy, culpable homicide, public disturbance, and conducts likely to cause breach of peace. They’ll be arraigned in court once investigation is concluded,” Adeh revealed.
Following the events of Tuesday, CP Garba convened a meeting on Wednesday, inviting Baruwa. This meeting was attended not only by Baruwa but also by the rival NURTW faction led by Tajudeen Agbede, the former Vice President, and Musiliu Akinsanya, also known as MC Oluomo. Notably, MC Oluomo had previously led the now-disbanded Lagos Park Management Committee, whose members had taken over the NURTW Headquarters in Abuja.
Reports say Baruwa accepted the invitation, hoping the meeting would address the ongoing conflict. However, instead of a resolution, he was arrested and detained, along with three other NURTW national executives: General Secretary Chukwudi Asogwa, Deputy General Secretary Abdulkadir Musa, and an unidentified officer.
Meanwhile, members and supporters of the Lagos State Park Management Committee, led by Agbede, who had allegedly forcefully seized control of the NURTW national secretariat in Garki 2 after a violent altercation, remained untouched by arrest or detention.
Recall that Baruwa had repeatedly sounded the alarm and sought assistance from the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services regarding an alleged conspiracy by Agbede and MC Oluomo’s group to launch a violent assault on the secretariat.
Unfortunately, security operatives appeared to feign ignorance of these concerns. Baruwa had also accused the police of colluding with Agbede and Oluomo’s NURTW faction.
