Some aggrieved policemen planning to embark on strike on Saturday have said the #EndSARS protest was hijacked by hoodlums sponsored by the Nigerian government.
Nigerians had, in October 2020, protested against the now-disbanded special anti-robbery squad (SARS), a unit of the Nigeria Police Force.
Set up in the mid-1990s to combat armed robbery, SARS morphed into a force associated with harassment, extortion and extrajudicial killings of suspects.
Following additional pressure from human rights groups and local and global media, President Muhammadu Buhari dissolved SARS on October 11, 2020.
The protest, tagged #EndSARS, was later hijacked by hoodlums, leading to killings and destruction of public buildings.
Speaking exclusively to SaharaReporters, an aggrieved policeman said most junior officers supported the protest because part of the demands was the increment of their salaries.
“Most of us actually supported the #EndSARS protest until it was hijacked by hoodlums sponsored by the government. The hoodlums started killing our colleagues, burning police stations.
“People like me escaped being lynched in Lagos all because I was wearing police uniform. What we are fighting for today were things the #EndSARS people demanded the government to do.
“During the #EndSARs saga, the government accepted the recommendations of the organisers which include increment of our salaries, better working conditions, habitable barracks, up to date crime fighting equipments etc but as we speak, none of those recommendations have been met. So why should we be angry with the organisers with all these demands to better our lives?”
“Vast majority of rank and file are ready for the strike but the high ranking officers are sitting on the fence although they are not pleased with the suffering in the Nigeria Police Force. Almost all the senior officers are in support of our action but would rather watch as the event unfolds,” another policeman said.
He added that they would embark on their planned industrial action despite threats by the Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, and arrest of some of their colleagues.
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