The Labour Party has demanded immediate release of Dr. Chigbo Okoli, the Chairman of its Sub-Committee on Registration and Revalidation of its National Transition Committee.

The Chairman and Secretary of the NTC, Abdulwahed Omar and Nnawuihe Nwauwa, made the demand in a statement.

In the statement made available to newsmen on Monday in Abuja, the party officials said Okoli was arrested by persons suspected to be officers of the Nigeria Police Force and had been held incommunicado.

The statement said: “On Tuesday, the 25th of June 2024, around 2pm, gun-wielding armed policemen swooped on Dr Okoli after he left the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police of Federal Capital Territory Command.

“They arrested him in a gestapo manner, without informing him of the offence he was suspected to have committed. Neither was he allowed to contact his lawyer nor any family member.”

The officials added that Okoli has been held incommunicado since the time of his arrest and neither charged to court nor released on administrative bail.

They described Okoli as “a peaceful and law-abiding citizen of Nigeria that has neither been arrested nor accused of committing a crime”.

They said: “Every attempt by his family, Attorneys and associates to access him has been unsuccessful.

“This is in clear violation of his fundamental human rights as enshrined in the 1999 Constitution, the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights and other statutes.”

The party officials called on the National Security Adviser, Inspector General of Police, among other security agencies, to ensure the immediate and safe release of Okoli forthwith.