The legal team of Tajudeen Ibikunle Baruwa has called for the arrest of Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly known as MC Oluomo, and the enforcement of court rulings recognising Baruwa as the National President of the National Union of Road Transport Workers.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Wednesday, Baruwa’s counsel, Tolu Babaleye, said his client was lawfully elected and had secured judgments from the National Industrial Court and the Court of Appeal affirming his leadership.

He alleged that despite the rulings, enforcement had been delayed for over two years, prompting Baruwa to take possession of the union’s national secretariat on Monday.

He stated, “On Monday, 23rd March 2026, Comrade Baruwa, exercising his lawful rights, moved into the NURTW National Office and took over peacefully. There was no resistance. There was no violence. This was not an act of thuggery; it was an act of legal self-help born out of the frustration of a man whose rights have been trampled upon despite possessing valid court judgments.

“The Nigeria Police Force, which for 30 months refused to act on judicial pronouncements, suddenly materialised. Instead of arresting the illegal occupants who had held the office in defiance of the courts, the police arrested Comrade Ibikunle Baruwa, the man with the judgment.

“He was taken to court and charged with public disturbance, a charge so baseless it insults the intelligence of even the most casual observer. How can a man exercising his right to assume an office granted to him by the Court of Appeal be guilty of public disturbance?

“The tragedy deepened on Tuesday, 24th March 2026. After unlawfully removing the court-recognised President from his office, the security agencies—led by the Nigerian Police, and shockingly supported by the Nigerian Army, the Civil Defence Corps, and other security formations—marched one Ayinde Akinsanya, a.k.a. MC Oluomo, into the NURTW National Office.”

The lawyer called on President Bola Tinubu to direct the Inspector-General of Police to enforce the judgments, arrest those occupying the secretariat unlawfully, and restore Baruwa to office.

“This is a pure and unadulterated case of contempt of court not just by individuals, but by the institutional machinery of the state. When security agencies choose which court orders to obey and which to ignore, we no longer have the rule of law; we have the rule of men.

“We call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to immediately direct the Inspector General of Police to arrest the illegal occupants of the NURTW National Office and restore Comrade Ibikunle Baruwa to his rightful position as affirmed by the Court of Appeal,” he added.

The development follows the takeover of the union’s Abuja secretariat by Baruwa on Monday, citing court rulings in his favour, a move that escalated the leadership crisis within the union.

Akinsanya had, however, insisted he remains the NURTW president, stating that the judgments relied upon by Baruwa were being challenged in court.

Court documents cited by Baruwa’s counsel showed that both the National Industrial Court and the Court of Appeal had recognised him as the duly elected president of the union and restrained interference in his leadership. (The PUNCH)

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