pixelcode
Nigeria Disbands Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS)

Nigeria Disbands Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS)

A Nigerian police force known as SARS or the Special Anti-Robbery Squad was just disbanded yesterday on Sunday, October 11th, 2020 after days of protests by citizens against the force’s killings and police brutality.

The SARS or the Special Anti-Robbery Squad was, until yesterday, a police force unit of Nigeria under the country’s Force Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department. It was headed by Anthony Ogbizi, the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Nigerian Police.

Several Nigerians spoke out against the police brutality and the killings carried out by the officers from the West African country’s special police force over the span of the past week, bringing to light the reality behind the squad’s actions. This includes but is not limited to carrying out crimes and brutalities outlined in the squad’s purpose which the officers are supposed to prevent from happening, but then they carry the actions out themselves.

Over the past week, numerous Nigerian citizens and celebrities took to social media to speak out against the SARS and oust the officers from their place of power and brutality. Protestors lined streets and main roads too, gaining attention from the police force in question, but also gaining attention from the government. Eventually, the force was disbanded by the Nigerian Police Force, announcing on Sunday that they had dissolved SARS and that an Investigation Team would work with the police on human rights violation cases to “enhance transparency and accountability”, according to the press release below:

The Nigerian Police Force’s official Twitter also announced the disbanding via a thread outlining the changes to be followed:

The officers are to be redeployed, however, a decision that was met with further criticism based on the fact that these employees of the government have carried out crimes under the shadow and protection of their country, and thus, they should be investigated and the police forces of the country should be reformed in accordance.

Stay tuned with Media Quotient Inc. to learn about further actions to be taken by the Nigerian government against police brutality, human rights violations, and investigations.

Credit: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Share via
Copy link
Powered by Social Snap