Former Vice President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar, has paid
tribute to the Nigerian youths for their resilience in exerting pressure on the
police authorities to disband the FSARS in response to public agitations to end
abuses by the anti robbery squad.
“This was the right thing to do. A system that brutally
eliminates our youths is not one to hold on to, and neither can we be proud of
it. Now we can start on a clean sheet to envision an elite police unit similar
to the SWAT and a comprehensive overhaul of the police and policing system that
peoples-focused”, Atiku said in a statement by his media office on Sunday.
According to Atiku, the will of the people is the bulwark of the
democratic system and those in authority cannot ignore the will of the people
without undermining democracy itself.
The Wazirin Adamawa however noted that redeploying the bad eggs
in SARS to other units may not augur well as they are capable of polluting
those units. According to him, the affected officers need to be properly
screened and retrained to ensure that they do not come into their new
assignments with the same mindset for which the disbanded unit was notorious
for.
Atiku Abubakar proposed an independent judicial inquiry into the
activities of SARS that will ensure justice for victims of extrajudicial
killings and punishment for officers involved in such dastardly acts. He also
suggested the opening of the dreaded SARS cells for scrutiny and stock taking
of detainees.
He said that the dissolution of SARS offers us an opportunity to
envision a police and policing system that ensures the primacy of the interest
of Nigerians, adding that the envisaged comprehensive overhaul of the Police
should take into consideration the needs of Regional, State and Council
components.
The Wazirin Adamawa congratulated Nigerian youths on achieving
their resolve and reminded them that if they stand united they can achieve much
more. He enjoined them to be steadfast in ensuring good governance in an
egalitarian society.
He commended the courage and patriotism of Nigerian youths that
took to the streets and the social media to call for an end to the brutal
abuses by SARS operatives.
He observed that "citizens who engaged in peaceful protests
without molesting innocent people are heroes of our democracy."
"I must commend the courage and tenacity of these youths
for holding rogue elements in the police force accountable. Apathy in the face
of abuses promotes impunity, and therefore these young men and women deserve
our respect for championing the disbandment of SARS," the former Vice
President added.
He paid tribute to Jimoh Isiaq who was killed in Ogbomoso in the
course of the #EndSARS protests and all those extra judicially killed over the
years and expressed the hope that their sacrifices would not be in vain.
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