SARS (Special anti-robbery squad)
The acronym SARS stands for Special Anti-robbery squad. It’s a Nigerian police force created in 1992 to deal with all sorts of crimes like burglary, abduction, motor vehicle theft and firearms related crimes. But cases have turned out otherwise where the police force brutalise the citizens of Nigeria, which is known as police brutality. https://www.flare.com/news/end-sars-nigeria-explainer/
Paul Kenneth, a victim of police brutality which are the SARS officers. Paul explained in detail on the Nigerian police force. The Special anti-robbery team interferes with the public and gather details concerning hoodlums and criminals so they can go after them. But they have taken it upon themselves to harass the public and use their guns to kill the citizens of Nigeria, simply because their extortion was not carried out by the victim or victims. Nigerian people and other citizens across the globe sparked the protest in Nigeria known as #ENDSARS. “I knew of an action that sparked this #ENDSARS protest when I went to Nigeria. A man was killed in broad daylight by a specific member of the society for not yielding to SARS extortion. When people saw this, with the help of social media and social media influencers they took it upon themselves to create various groups to make a protest” Paul Kenneth said.
The Disbandment and renaming of the Police force.
The Nigerian people wanted SARS to be dismantled, which is why they were tens of thousands demonstrating, the government yielding to the demands of the demonstrators by scraping SARS, but they renamed the police force to SWAT, but the Nigerian civilians reacted by disagreeing with the police force’s renaming by saying NO to the change of the name because “ Today you cannot dismantle a police force wing and make a quick change to the name and force without adequate training, it’s like putting old wine in a new bottle”. What the Nigerian citizens said. The demands of the protesters are very basic which is #ENDSARS #ENDPOLICEBRUTALITY.
“I am a victim of SARS, I wasn’t driving, I was well dressed and the SARS force drove by me in a pickup van and said, you come here! About five of them came up to me with their guns” Paul said. “I’m on holidays, I do not live in the country” Paul said. After that, they told Paul to come to the station to investigate more about him. The #ENDSARS movement has not spread around the world but what is happening in Nigeria is noticed by the world and they know of a protest in Nigeria, but they did not have ample awareness of the situation and how serious it was.
In solidarity of the Nigerian people, so many world leaders needed SARS to be disbanded because they have heard reports and seen what they have done and still doing to the citizens.
Casualties Of the Protest.
During the rally, there were protesters which were killed during and after the protest. There were about twenty-two people who died from the military violence of the protesters but the Governor of the state of Lagos, head by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, he gave an incorrect number of people that died in an interview with CNN, but CNN ultimately learned they were more than the number of death casualties the governor provided.
The Lekki Massacre.
At around 6:50pm on the night of 20 October 2020, officers of the Nigerian army opened fire on unarmed ENDSARS protesters at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos State, Nigeria. The Lekki toll gate was completely burnt down, which was part of the #ENDSARS protest. This act quailed a riot. The president of Nigeria, known as Muhammed Buhari, did not discuss the situation of the Lekki Massacre and the ENDSARS protest, but after 80% of the destruction has happened, Muhammed Buhari addressed the situation later. When he addressed the situation, little concern was displayed to the protesters and he was not sympathetic to the families of the deceased.
We have thirty-six states and a federal capital territory, making it thirty-seven states. Nigeria is a very large nation. The federal capital territory has not yet been proclaimed a state. Every governor of the thirty-six states were sympathetic to every protester simply because they did not want more harm to be done in their states. The smart thing that each governor did was to help the protesters by sending a letter to the federal government to say that this is what the country needs is to end SARS and the violence of the police.
The Nigerian Police force is a force that can be categorized as politician’s beck and call and not necessarily in order to support Nigerian people, because they do what politicians want and not what the citizens want. The police force sees the protection of the politicians is more important than the citizens of Nigeria.
The rebranding of SARS unit.
SARS was rebranded, but the protesters claimed they didn’t want SARS to be rebranded. Like the American SWAT, the rebranding name they developed was SWAT. The protesters objected that they should not disband an arm of the police department and rebrand them few days after they were disbanded, no proper instruction/training was offered, they are still the same people with the same mindset about how they interact with the public. During this tumultuous time, it was very difficult for people to cope.
From the beginning, foreign and local media have reported the events, but the drastic turn at the Lekki toll plaza has put a renewed emphasis on the Nigerian situation. The united states and the European union have called for an end to police violence.
The protest should however, not dwell on the short term, but on the long term. Leaders need not to dwell on hopes of winning political influence, but should also ensure that the authorities adhere to their pledge to change and put to justice the errant police. It’s not all about police brutality, #ENDSARS. It’s is for Nigeria and the future generation ahead.
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