The issue surrounding police brutality in Nigeria cuts across the entire police force and not only SARS alone, but a unit of NPF code name Special Anti-Robbery Squad is mostly and notoriously known for high impunity, extortion, brutality and other abuse of fundamental human right, which is what bring the unit to the forefront of nationwide protest, public rejection and social unrest.
Ending SARS is not the solution to the problems created by SARS itself but the protest against SARS is a right thing in the right direction because it sends worrying signals to the constituted authorities in Nigeria about police brutality and the anger and displeasure of the Nigerian people.
SARS is not the only unit in NPF known for such attrocities as there are other worst unit of the NPF which are synonymous with SARS just that they bear a different name. The anti cultism squad, Anti kidnapping, mobile police, special forces, special protection unit and counter terrorism unit exhibit the attitude of SARS officials we are all frowning at today but theirs might not be up to the level SARS are taking it but SARS aren’t alone when it comes to brutality and extortion which is why I see the NPF as the main problem and not sars because sars is a unit under the NPF.
Even junior officers of the NPF exhibit these deviant behaviour and the level of corruption in all these units I listed above shows the level of rot in the NPF which means ending SARS will not stop or put an end to such irresponsible behaviour of some officers of NPF.
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The disbandment of SARS means that the officers in SARS will be moved to a new unit where they can continue thier bruttish behaviours, not that the entire police in SARS will be sacked but moved to other Departments.
We are agitating for the unit named SARS to be scraped, hoping that will bring a long lasting solution to the menace caused by these men but the government could wake up tomorrow and form a new anti robbery squad with a different name where these notorious officers could continue thier pestilential act and we start trending to end the new unit. This is just to tell us that we are just cutting the branches but to solve the problem we need to deal with the tree itself.
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There are more pressing issue we need to look at which is the reform of the entire Nigeria Police Force but making SARS case a starting point shouldn’t deter us from demanding a radical reform of the Nigeria Police Force from being an enemy of the people to the freind of the people.
The officers of the NPF shouldn’t be going all about with ak-47, it’s not done in saner climes. Nigeria is not at war neither are we in Afganistan or any war zone, so why the public parade of weapons? Also, the members of NPF shouldn’t be allowed to go home with weapons.
SARS officers shouldn’t take the lashes alone as I believe these officers report to their superior who are well aware of the attrocities and crime they commit in the name of enforcing the law.
Ending SARS is not the solution as I have positioned earlier but reforming the entire NPF is the best solution to the canckerworm of SARS menace and the cul-de-sac we are currently deposited into. We all must demand for the reformation of SARS and all SARS officers that will be deployed to other units in the NPF must undergo a psychatric test to examine their mental state and ability to community policing.
Ending and abolishing SARS is good but reforming the entire NPF is better.
Shokoya Olakunle Adeboye, is a Masters student of development Sociology with biases in criminology.
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