“How can I be safe in Accra and not in Lagos?” – #EndSARS protesters in Ghana

General news for Thursday, October 15, 2020

Source: Daily mail

2020-10-15

Nigerians living in Ghana have also joined the campaign for justice for victims of police brutality and a review of the security apparatus.

Protesters besieged the Nigerian High Commissioner’s office on Tuesday to join the #EndSARS campaign, even as authorities announced the immediate disbanding of a notorious anti-theft unit that has long been accused of gross human rights abuses.

Fueled by the alleged murder of a man by an officer in southern Nigeria, thousands of people took to the streets this week across the West African country to protest police brutality and demand the total abolition of the Special Anti-Theft Squad. (SARS).

Accra protests

However, security was tightened at the Nigerian High Commissioner’s office in the Ghanaian capital when protesters holding banners bearing various inscriptions shared stories alleging extortion, torture, disappearances and even killings at the hands of gang members. Unit.

“We are not happy. This is a threat. They are just shooting and killing people like animals,” said one of the protesters as he praised the Ghanaian authorities for keeping the peace in the country.

“The pressure is too much. I left Nigeria because of SARS, ”said another. “We are talking today because we are not sure. How can I be safe in Accra and not in Lagos? “he asked through tears.

Petition

Presenting a petition to High Commission officials after nearly an hour of protest, Yemesi Falaye, the group’s coordinator, said his action is to ensure better treatment for his compatriots at home.

“In Nigeria, it’s bad enough that we don’t have good roads, water and electricity… But there has been electricity in Ghana for the last nine days that I have been here. If you want to have a good life [in Nigeria] you have to work hard to meet your needs.

“Now that we have done all these things, we still face police brutality. We still have the police harassing us and extorting us, but I know it is not their fault … we have to reform the Nigerian police a lot, ”Falaye said.

“Our simple request as Nigerian taxpayers is an end to police brutality. When we are done with this, we will request others, but in the meantime, we want to end SARS. “

The Acting High Commissioner of Nigeria in Ghana, Esther Arewa, for her part, assured that her complaints will be sent to the Nigerian government for further action.

“Your request will be transmitted to the Nigerian government,” he said, adding: “The government is already aware of the general outcry due to the brutalities. They [the IGP] has discarded it [the SARS] and I want you to know that everything you have written will be communicated to the highest authority in Nigeria. “

The protest continues in Nigeria

Meanwhile, thousands of people in Nigeria took to the streets for the sixth day in a row to protest the threat, keeping up the pressure in a campaign that forced the government to announce the dissolution of a notorious police unit.

Last week, young people mobilizing through social media began holding demonstrations calling for the abolition of the Federal Special Anti-Theft Squad (SARS), which has long been accused of illegal arrests, torture and extrajudicial executions.

Since then, the #ENDSARS protests have gained huge support in the country and the diaspora, with some of Nigeria’s most popular stars putting their weight, and many supporters, behind the demonstrations.