Why another outfit that will be unveiled will end up like SARS

To start with, it should be clear—as water—to everyone now that Nigeria can never truly move forward without consistent peaceful protests from the true owners of Nigeria. I am talking about the youth population of Nigeria. And every youth should understand that without consistent defiant and non-violent protests, those who are in the corridors of power will never perform their statutory functions. Political-leaders in Nigeria do not listen to voice of reason; the only voice they listen to is that of protests!

Going forward, policemen need to understand that their job is to protect non-violent protesters, not to attack them. Each time men of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) attack protesters—who are not armed; it shows how under-developed we are as a people. The reason protesters move to the levels of civil-disobedience and vandalization of government assets and property is when those who are supposed to protect them while protesting are either shooting them or using teargas on them.

Also, the allegiance of the Nigeria Police Force(NPF) should be to Nigerians and not to anyone in power and the NPF needs to understand that it is barbarous, lawless and evil to either use teargas on non-violent protesters or shoot them. It is sad each time harmless and poor people of Nigeria are gunned down during protests by some uncivilized-members of the NPF. Policemen need to understand that taxpayers are paying them in order to protect our people, not to kill them.

Correspondingly, each time our people choose to protest non-violently against some of our pressing and shameful national issues, it does not mean they hate and detests whoever is in power; it is just one of their constitutional rights. Our constitution allows non-violent protests without taking permission from anyone, so arresting our people while protesting is kicking against the constitution of our country. One of the reasons people do not respect our constitution is because those who are in power to uphold and respect it do not respect it a hoot.

“ENDSARS” protests are spreading as wildfire and world leaders, cutting across every fiber of life are coming out to speak, supporting the teeming youths of our nation on scrapping it. It is only in Nigeria that people will die and protests of this magnitude will be happening and the president will not address the whole nation. It is a sure sign that baba does not value and respect Nigerians. Nigerians are sick and tired of hearing from those who are being paid to speak for him!

For the umpteenth time, president Buhari needs to come out now before it is too late and address Nigerians in a live broadcast, showing leadership. After this, every governor will also need to address those they are in leadership to serve. Addressing Nigerians during a function in Abuja, reeling out the usual political lines is not enough. He should approach some of those protesting in Abuja and address Nigerians from there. This is the kind of President Nigerians want. And I do not think this is too much for our people to ask.

I am of the opinion that the Mohammed Adamu disbanding SARS is just window-dressing and a tactical stunt and ploy to douse the tension that is daily building in the country as an effect of “ENDSARS” protests. On the condition that the NPF is not completely reformed, where they are living renovated like that of the Senate and their salary increased like that of politicians and they stop being money-driven like politicians, the new outfit the IGP of police promised to unveil will also end up like the blood-thirsty and fraudulent disbanded SARS!

Disbanding SARS without arresting and prosecuting those who have been killing and defrauding our people is playing to the gallery. Around 2pm at Surulere in Lagos, some hours after SARS was disbanded by the IGP of police, some non-violent and harmless protesters were shot. One dead and two are fighting for their lives. This should let you know that scrapping SARS has not changed anything.

My advice to our youths is that they should use ENDSARS protests as an acronym to address every issue in our country. Treating SARS as an isolated case in a nation as ours, is a waste of time. SARS is just a symptom, not the real problem we are having. Focusing on SARS alone is like plucking and yanking the leafs of a tree without uprooting it.

A boy that I know was sent on errand by his sister and was picked up by some policemen, not SARS. They checked his phone, there was nothing incriminating on it. He was allowed to call the person who sent him on errand and after that, they forcefully took the phone from him and told the person to come bail him on the Island. In other words, they came to arrest a law-abiding citizen of Nigeria from the Island to the mainland!

Immediately they spoke to the person who sent him on errand, they abruptly discontinued the conversation and every call that was made to talk to them was not taken. The person now sent an SMS on his line that he was going to report to a high-ranking police officer. When they read through the SMS, they drove the boy far away from home and shouted on him to get down. This happened after about five (5) of them who were lawlessly picked-up by those wicked officers had taken them to various ATM in Lagos to withdraw a lot of thousands of naira from their accounts, robbing those they were supposed to protect!

What most Nigerians are worshipping is money and politicians and some religious leaders built the shrines across the length and breadth of Nigeria. This is the god that all our political leaders are worshipping in the corridors of power. And this god reigns supreme in Nigeria. There is so much evil in Nigeria, because the love of money is our number one problem. Till money is dethroned, enthroning values, nothing will work here.

Lastly, when the Inspector General of Police unveils another security outfit, replacing Special Anti-Robbery Squad, where are we going to get those who will drive the new security unit? Are we importing them? Our problem is deeper than the issue of SARS and the solution to the problem of SARS is beyond scrapping it and floating another one. It is clear that Adamu has lost control of his men!