According to African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore, the Nigerian police have not learned any lessons from the EndSARS demonstration in the wake of the recent murder of a lawyer, Omobolanle Raheem.
When an officer in Ajah, Lagos State, opened fire on Raheem’s family’s car during a checkpoint, she and her unborn child were both killed. Raheem was returning from a Christmas Day service.
Media reports claim that the officers were engaged in a stop-and-search operation, however the exact circumstances are still unknown. Many Nigerians and human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have criticized the police and government as a result of the incident.
The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the police was disbanded in October 2020 as a result of complaints about years of harassment and rights breaches by SARS members. In 2020, the protests known as EndSARS were started in response to these complaints. The contentious squad was replaced by the Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWAT), a brand-new organization. The protests attracted attention from all over the world and ended in the shooting of unarmed protestors at the Lekki tollgate, which left 56 people dead.
The police detained the officer who killed Raheem by shooting him. According to Amnesty International, the police inquiry needs to be fair and made public.
