SARS is an acronym for the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, which was founded in response to an increase in robberies in Nigeria. In 2018, protests spearheaded by the youth erupted in several Nigerian states, killing over 51 people, 11 police officers, and seven soldiers. Here’s what happened since.
Special anti-robbery squad SARS is a police unit that was formed to deal with an increase in cases of robbery in Nigeria. The #ENDSARS protest began when officers of the unit were accused of extortion, bribery, and extrajudicial killings. It has been two years since the protests happened—has anything changed yet?
The hashtag #ENDSARS gained traction in 2018 following the release of Rugged Man’s song titled, “Is police your friend?” He wrote the song after many cases of SARS-related police brutality were reported in the country. An Amnesty International report revealed that young men were being arrested illegally, harassed, tortured, and extorted money from their families to secure their release. SARS stands for the special anti-robbery squad.
SARS is a branch of the Nigerian police, formed in 1992 to help curb violence. Peaceful protests occurred in various Nigerian cities, such as Lagos, Abuja, and Benin. Other international cities, such as London, participated in the protest.
After a video emerged of a SARS officer shooting a young man in front of a wetland hotel in Delta State, another SARS protest erupted in October 2020. The video clip circulated first on Twitter, where the hashtag ended up gaining momentum worldwide.
Protests led by the youth occurred in various Nigerian states, which led to the deaths of over 51 civilians, 11 police officers, and seven soldiers.
The protesters had five demands that they wanted the government to meet, which were: they demanded the immediate release of those arrested by the police during the course of the protests; the youth demanded compensation for the families of those killed by the SARS officers;
The next demand was for the government to set up an independent body to investigate these cases of police brutality and for them to face justice. The protesters also wanted officers to get a psychological evaluation and better training before getting deployed, and finally, they demanded a substantial increase in wages for police officers because poor pay was one of the causes of extortions and corruption.
It has been two years since the SARS protest ravaged various states in Nigeria. Have there been any changes, and were the requirements actualized? On the 11th of October 2020, the inspector general of police, Mohammed Adamu, announced the dissolution of SARS and the later creation of SWAT special weapons and tactics, with the promise that the officers would be trained well and evaluated before being posted. However, according to an Amnesty International report in August 2021, the brutality was still going on.
“The evidence gathered by Amnesty International paints a damning picture of ruthless and excessive force by Nigerian security forces,” says Osai Ojigho, country director at Amnesty International.
Protesters had demanded the investigation and prosecution of SARS officers involved in the incidents. A presidential investigative panel had recommended the prosecution of over 30 officers, but by September 2022, no officer accused had been prosecuted due to a lack of sufficient evidence. The government set up judicial panels of inquiry and restitution to handle the process of compensating the victims. The program collapsed due to a lack of sufficient funds to sustain it, and only a fraction of the families affected have received any settlement.
The demand for an increase in the salaries of police officers was not met by the government either. Cases of extortion and harassment are still going on. The last request was for the release of those arrested during the protest. Many youths are still incarcerated without trial, a legal technicality under Section 293 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act of 2015. Seyi Awobola, one of the protesters arrested, was released in 2021. Several others are still held without the prospect of a trial soon.
In conclusion, not much has changed since the last SARS protests. There are still cases of extrajudicial killings, increased insecurity, and extreme corruption in the country. I would describe the country as a ticking time bomb. It is not a matter of if but when the next big protests will happen.
Main photo: By Salako Ayoola , CC0, Link
