President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has narrated to the global working class, trustees of the Arthur Svensson Foundation, and leaders of the Norwegian labour movement how he was arrested like a common criminal. He recounted being harassed and repeatedly questioned over alleged trumped-up charges of terrorism financing and criminal conspiracy, all because he was fighting a just cause — protecting Nigerian workers from exploitation and resisting attempts to silence the labour movement.
He made this known yesterday in Norway, where he was honoured as the 2026 laureate of the Arthur Svensson International Award for his courage and commitment to defending workers' rights. Ajaero is the first trade union leader in Nigeria to receive the Arthur Svensson Award, established in memory of the legendary Norwegian trade unionist and internationalist, Arthur Svensson. The award recognises individuals who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strategic acumen, and an unwavering commitment to defending workers' rights and trade union freedoms worldwide.
Ajaero's Ordeal in Nigeria
Addressing the audience, Ajaero stated that in Nigeria today, defending a living wage makes one a target of the state, while demanding that workers should not die of hunger in a country rich in crude oil earns one the label of an enemy of the state. Denying any involvement in terrorism financing, Ajaero said the only terror the labour movement finances is “the terror that grips the heart of every exploiter when workers unite.”
He recalled how his harrowing experience began in 2023 when his Lagos home was destroyed by a mysterious fire that razed the building and consumed all his personal belongings. He also recounted how he was abducted, detained, and brutalised for insisting on the implementation of agreements designed to protect workers' rights.
Arrest and Harassment
Ajaero further told the audience how he was harassed and arrested while travelling to Britain to attend a Trade Union Congress (TUC) conference, allegedly to prevent him from informing the international community about the challenges facing the labour movement in Nigeria. Describing the award as a launchpad rather than an endpoint, Ajaero issued a warning to multinational corporations “sucking the blood of our export processing zones,” as well as to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, and Nigerian politicians already scheming for the 2027 elections, saying Nigerian workers are watching.
A Symbol of Workers' Struggles
Speaking at the award ceremony in Oslo, Norway, Ajaero said the honour was not a personal achievement but recognition of the struggles of workers across Nigeria. “I stand before you today not as a man, but as a symbol, a true symbol of millions of Nigerian workers who wake up every morning not just to the smell of tear gas, the sound of sirens, and the cold silence of a state that preys on its own people but who go to work hungry and come back hungrier more emasculated than before they left for work,” he said.
