The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) on Monday said that officers and men of the Nigeria Police should not be generally condemned as evil.
The MURIC Director, Prof. Ishaq Akintola, said in a statement that participants in the #EndSARS protests should be reminded that some SARS operatives have contributed immensely to the war against criminality over the years in the country.
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According to him, closer attention should also be paid to other police departments, apart from SARS, if the excesses of the police is going to be curbed.
He however, said that the good ones among the police should consider the ongoing protests with its attendant travails as a trial from Allah and a confirmation of His divine warning.
“We remind #EndSARS protesting youth that not all SARS operatives are callous and vicious. Among them also are officers who have principle and who devote their whole life to the pursuance of criminals and the protection of innocent Nigerians at the risk of their own lives. They stay awake all night so that Nigerians can sleep in peace.
“Among such SARS officers is Abba Kyari, the renowned super cop who has cracked several hard cases and in whose hands many hardened criminals have met their Waterloo. It is our considered opinion that generalisation will not be fair to such officers who have served Nigeria well. The reform of the Nigerian Police which is being contemplated should take note of such gallant officers.
“MURIC calls the attention of the Inspector General of Police to the need to permanently remove all roadblocks and to stop policemen from checking vehicle particulars henceforth. Instructions to this effect have been issued a hundred times by the police leadership but they were never adhered to.
“We note with special interest that there has been no single roadblock or police checks of vehicle particulars since the commencement of #EndSARS protests particularly in zones affected by the protests,” Akintola said.
He also said that MURIC will not support the extension of #EndSARS to other grievances and that the #EndSARS must not be politicised.
He said that this amount to hijacking a cause and diverting the people’s sentiment to narrow and selfish objectives.
He said, “A look at our major points before we round off: we doff our hats to SARS heroes like Abba Kyari; we appeal to righteous policemen to accept the ongoing tribulation with philosophical equanimity; we call on police reform panels to note the gallant ones among the police for adequate compensation; police roadblocks and checkpoints must not come back again and, finally, we call for the digitalization of vehicle particulars in conformity with global standards.”
