-
-- --Demand listening ear and Justice from the
Federal Government
18 Oct. 2020
The Catholic Bishops Conference
of Nigeria (CBCN) has strongly lent its support to the call of the Nigerian
Youths for an end to Police brutality, as well as other ills bedevilling the
Country.
This is contained in a Press Release
of the CBCN titled, ‘ENDSARS Protest: a cry for Justice and Peace in Nigeria’
signed by its president, Most Rev. Augustine Akubeze, and issued Saturday October
17.
The Bishops said the protest seems to have a life of its own and spreading all over the country, which shows that most Nigerians are facing the same oppression and brutality inflicted by the SARS.
The protest against the brutality
of the Nigeria’s federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), which began last
week, has spread almost to all states of the federation, and has since broadened to include all police forces. Thousands of Youths are accusing SARS, as well as
the entire Police Force, of unlawful arrests, torture and murder.
In the Press Release the
Bishops urged the federal government to secure the lives and property of every
Nigerian and provide opportunities for Nigerian children to realise their God-given
potentials.
According to the Bishops, it is
remarkable and quite commendable that the protest is being led by the youths of
Nigeria who are tired of suffering from the brutality and injustices
perpetrated by officers of the SARS and the Nigeria Police Force as a whole.
They noted: “The youths are,
therefore, simply calling for justice not just for themselves, but for the
entire nation so that Nigeria can have peace. Whereas the Federal Government
keeps asking for peace and calm in the face of every crisis, the present
agitation shows that our youths have run out of patience and are tired of the
lip-service paid by the government of the day towards a just and peaceful
society.
“We unequivocally add our voice
to those of our youths and that of every well-meaning Nigerian to condemn the
excesses and the horrible operations of this police unit and the bad omen they
portend to our democracy.
“The Government of Nigeria must
realise that anyone who desires peace, must work for and cherish justice since
there can be no true peace where injustice is the order of the day as it is in
Nigeria today.
“We need to also remind ourselves
that peace is not the absence of war because wherever there is injustice, war
has already been declared on the people”.
The Bishops further described the
EndSARS protest as a microcosm of the fundamental problems in Nigeria, saying
the audacity and impunity with which the SARS officials have been operating all
the while is a manifestation of the failing state of Nigeria.
They added: “Various bodies and
patriotic Nigerians have expressed the opinion that just ending the SARS will
not solve the enormous problems of Nigeria, because it is futile treating
symptoms of a disease when the root cause is known.
“A centralized Police Force in
Nigeria is primarily responsible for the lack of grassroots accountability for
the crimes perpetrated by the SARS and their likes.
“We reiterate that restructuring
this country is a desirable path to be towed given the various developments in
this nation. The knee jerk reaction of the administration by abolishing the
SARS and setting up the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team portrays either
the absence of an understanding of the entire problem or a lack of sincerity to
address the problem.
“The Nigerian Government must
realise that what the youths, on behalf of Nigerians, clamour for under the
code name #EndSARS is a total reform of the entire Police Force and not a
change of name; they call for a reform of all our government institutions and a
reform of the entire nation.
“They are asking for a system
that will be hard on crimes and criminals in the society within the ambience of
the law, while at the same time treating every human being, citizens and
visitors alike, with respect and dignity.
‘Moreover, the #EndSARS protest
is a cry for justice for all victims of the SARS and police brutality, and a
call for the prosecution of all those responsible for these crimes against
humanity and their superiors under whose leadership such heinous atrocities
were committed against innocent Nigerians,” the Bishops said.
Last two months, the CBCN called
on Nigerians to embark on 40 days prayer and fasting for an end to insecurity,
killings, banditry, terrorism, and corruption in Nigeria. The period of prayer,
which began on August 22, was concluded on October 1, Nigeria’s Independence Day
commemoration.
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