Why FG cannot afford to scrap SARS now - Femi Falana

macfranc007 December 12, 2017 Nigeria News today & Breaking news ▷ Read Nigerian newspapers 24/7 Kess Ewubare

- Human rights activist, Femi Falana, advocates for SARS be completely overhauled

- The senior lawyer says the squad is partially illegal as it is a legacy of the military government

- Family calls for investigation as man allegedly dies in SARS custody

Human rights activis, Femi Falana, has said the Nigerian government cannot afford to scrap the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) due to the increase in violent crimes which the regular police personnel have not been trained to combat.

Falana however advocated for the squad to be completely overhauled.

He said currently, the squad is partially illegal as it is a legacy of the military government.

The senior lawyer made the statement on Tuesday, December 12, during a Channels TV programme.

He advocated for armed troops among SARS operatives to be removed and for the policemen among them to undergo reorientation as they operate like they are in a military government.

Falana said: "You must remove the soldiers in SARS and retrain the police among them. You re-orientate them because they still behave as if they are under military dictatorship because SARS is a legacy of military dictatorship. As it is constituted, it is partly illegal under a civilian and democratic dispensation. Under the constitution, the duty of maintaining internal security, law and order in Nigeria is vested exclusively in the police.

“SARS is constituted by armed troops, soldiers and police personnel all over the country. Every state government maintains the SARS in the country and these state governments have not bothered to find out what is this body doing in terms of law enforcement, combating armed robbery and performance in terms of respecting the rights of the Nigerian people.”

He said SARS was still needed to curb violent crime but should be overhauled.

“The Nigerian new colonial state cannot afford to scrap SARS, it is not possible. We have an increasing wave of armed robbery, kidnapping terrorism and other serious violent crimes which the regular police personnel have not been trained to curb or combat, therefore we are going to have SARS but it has to be totally overhauled,” he stated.

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Meanwhile, the death of one Seun Ayoade, who allegedly died in the custody of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad of the Ondo state police command, has generated calls for investigation from the family of the deceased.

Family members alleged that SARS operatives on October 17, 2017, at the Oke Aro area of Akure, the state capital, reportedly arrested Seun and his brother Abayomi, together with some other suspects for alleged robbery, The Punch reports.

According to a family source, the deceased was arrested by SARS operative because he had a misunderstanding with a member of the anti-robbery squad.

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