PROTESTERS, led by the Publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, on Thursday, stormed the Police Headquarters in Abuja, asking the Federal Government to scrap the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad.
The protesters, who demanded the presence of the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, carried placards with inscriptions such as #EndSARSNow and WeDontNeedSARS, among others.
They were chanting solidarity songs and calling on the IGP to attend urgently to the plight of Nigerians with regard to the incessant killings of mainly innocent citizens.
The Point had reported that the IGP banned operatives of SARS and other Tactical Squads of the Force from carrying out routine patrols and other conventional low-risk duties.
The Special Tactical Squad, Intelligence Response Team, Anti-Cultism Squad and other Tactical Squads operating at the Federal, Zonal and Command levels were also included in the ban.
A statement on Sunday by the Force Public Relations Officer, DSP Frank Mba, said such duties, including stop-and-search, checkpoints, mounting of roadblocks and traffic checks, among others, had been banned with immediate effect.
This followed protests against what many Nigerians described as the reckless conduct of SARS operatives in carrying out their duties.
The IGP had also told Nigerian youths that their voices and complaints as regards the unprofessional conduct of the operatives had been heard loudly and clearly.
The statement said, “Specifically, the IGP has warned the Tactical Squads against the invasion of the privacy of citizens, particularly through indiscriminate and unauthorised search of mobile phones, laptops and other smart devices.
”They are to concentrate and respond only to cases of armed robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes when the need arises. The IGP notes that the FSARS and other Police Tactical Squads remain a critical component of the Force in confronting prevailing and emerging violent crimes in the country.”
The protesters however called for the outright scrapping of SARS, saying the IGP’s measures would not end the crisis being caused.
