For several days last year, the #EndSARS protest raged across Nigeria. Hoodlums said to be sponsored by the state, took over the protest and wreaked havoc. It took the intervention of the military for things to calm down.
But today is the first anniversary of the shooting by men that government seems to be washing its hands off. They shot at protesters at the upscale Lekki Tollgate after the 4pm deadline given by Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, for everyone to vacate the streets and observe a 24-hour curfew, expired.
While some protesters were arrested by security agents, others were abducted, and yet others maimed. To borrow a phrase from Afrobeat musician Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, many unknown civilians, euphemism for those whose identities are yet to be determined, were killed.
In response to the demands of the protesters, the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, or SARS, was disbanded on October 11, 2020, but it was soon replaced with SWAT, or Special Weapons Tactical Team. Special investigative boards were set up across the states.
To date, records of the dead, maimed, wounded or simply missing, as provided by the government are at variance with figures provided by the protesters. But there are no doubts about fatalities, the wounded and the missing.
A video, showing SARS police officers killing a young man in front of a hotel in Ughelli in Delta State and allegedly taking away his vehicle, and another report of police allegedly shooting to death 20-year old Daniel Chibuike, aka Sleek, an upcoming musician, again in front of a hotel, was the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Hitherto pent up tensions against SARS officers who seem to take delight in harassing successful youths who sometimes drive cars, more expensive than their looks, got to a head and #EndSARS was the only obvious outcome.
Many of the protagonists of the “leaderless” protest, including Onanuju Catherine Ude, better known as DJ Switch, who recently surfaced in a video in Oslo, Norway, are currently in hiding from the state as political refugees in other countries.
The braver ones, who appeared before the sundry commissions of enquiry to probe the incident are not quite sure what they took away from the enquiries, apart from frustration and more aggravation. And government is not quite helping the matter, save for the usual hubris and trite governmentese.
The #EndSARS protest was almost a eureka of, “I have a dream,” for Nigerian youths. For the first time, older citizens of Nigeria took a backseat, to watch the kids as they demonstrated a grasp of the issues and interrogated them in a most brilliant manner.
The five-point demands that the #EndSARS protesters presented to government were: Immediate release of arrested protesters; justice for deceased victims of police brutality and appropriate compensation for their families; and independent judicial bodies to investigate and prosecute reported police brutality within 10 days.
Other demands were: psychological evaluation of disbanded SARS officers before they are redeployed; increased salary and adequate compensation for police officers. Governments all over the federation got working.
#EndSARS was carried out through protests, demonstrations, marches, civil disobedience and online activities, especially on Twitter, the microblogging site that recorded more than 28 million tweets. Nigeria’s diaspora, in the Americas, Europe, Oceania and some parts of Africa.
Because many of the youths are “natives” of the Internet that has the capacity to share information in real-time, it was easy to mobilise the youths in Lagos, other parts of the country and even in the diaspora.
The defiant slogan, “s’oro s’oke,” Yoruba for speak up, served as the identity of the young generation, mostly the millennials, who are brilliant, digitally savvy, financially independent and have clear views about where they think Nigeria should be going.
When government saw how organised they were, it instigated the Central Bank of Nigeria to freeze the bank accounts of those identified as either financiers or the conduit of funds coming in from the diaspora to oil the machine of the protest.
Governments, across Nigeria, will be on tenterhooks all day today, trying to figure out where and how the #EndSARS vanguards will launch their forays. Government security agents are very likely to be crawling all over and listening in to any conversations that may give a hint of the intentions of the would-be protesters.
This anticipated situation of unease reminds one of the Yoruba metaphor of the absence of peace for the chicken the rope it perches upon. It’s going to be a tale of twists, turns, tension, unease, discomfort and fear.
It would be an interesting view if Big Brother were to train his cameras all over the country for all to see the anxious skirmishes and counter-skirmishes between the #EndSARS group and the law enforcement agents.
And as if to confirm that the fear of #ENDSARS protesters is the beginning of wisdom the Inspector General of Police took pains to explain that those who reported that he was about to revive SARS didn’t read their tea leaves right.
Online newspaper, SaharaReporters, is quoting some anonymous sources who claim that “The earlier trip (planned by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to visit his homestead) Daura has been stepped down over threats of the resurgence of #EndSARS memorial uprising.”
Last week, sympathisers of #ENDSARS, whose identities are not known, released an e-flyer that was circulated online, announcing programmes planned, all in Lagos, to mark the first anniversary of the protest and to mourn those who reportedly died during the protest last year.
A jumat service was planned for Friday, October 15, at Jumaat Suadr Central Mosque at Ojota. Traditional rites were planned to hold at New Africa Shrine on Saturday, 16. On Sunday, 17, a Christian service was to be held at Lagos Christian Centre, somewhere off Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja.
The finale would be a walk today Wednesday, 20th October 2021, in various cities and towns in Nigeria, by 9am. In Lagos, a walk will start from locations yet to be disclosed, and end as a Candle Light Procession at the Lekki Tollgate.
That suggests an all-day of processions, if not outright demonstration, to remind Nigerians and government of the tragedy and the demands made by the “soro s’oke” generation, about one year ago.
Though there were no reports that the jumat service, traditional rites and the church service were held, civil society activist and attorney, Femi Falana, has cautioned that Lagos State police command has no authority to disallow a commemorative #EndSARS protest.
Falana’s son, Folarin, actor and musician, also known as Falz, notes, in anguish it seems, that “a year (after #EndSARS protests) no one has been punished yet,” for what he described as “those heinous acts.”
Comedian Debo “Mr Macaroni” Adebayo, regrets that attempts to convene the #EndSARS protests were frustrated with police armoured tanks, vans and trucks. A notable event centre in Lagos State reportedly chickened out of hosting an #EndSARS event.
The Yoruba have used a clever way of linking the police to the event centre’s withdrawal: “Aje ke lana. Omo ku l’oni.” The witch sang a dirge yesterday. The child died today.” It’s anybody’s guess that the witch knew something about the death of the child.
Today, government should allow the protests, provide security for lawful protesters and apprehend violent hoodlums.
