Retired Deputy Inspector General of Police, DIG Peter Ogunyanwo has come out to say that lack of human right courses and poor remuneration of police officers has led to a breach of human rights by police officers in the country.

DIG Peter Ogunyanwo, a member of the Ogun Judicial Panel of Investigation recently revealed this in Abeokuta.

According to him, an average police officer must know that without the public, he or she cannot do this job effectively, so they should not be treated as enemies or servants.

He added that Nigerians should also respect and love security operatives because they are friends, not foes.

His words, “Without security operatives, the public cannot live in peace and the security personnel cannot do it alone too, both should partner together for peace to reign because, without peace, there cannot be development. That is the spirit behind community policing that the federal government is pushing for.”

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The Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) is a Nigerian Police Force unit under the Force Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department headed by the Deputy Inspector General of Police Anthony Ogbizi. Since 2012, SARS has come under controversy for being linked to acts of extortion, torture, framing and blackmail.

The Special Anti-Robbery Squad was founded in 1992 by former police commissioner Simeon Danladi Midenda. The major reason SARS was formed was when Col. Rindam, a Nigerian Army Colonel was killed by police officers at a checkpoint in Lagos.

SARS is one of the 14 units in the Force Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department which was established to detain, investigate and prosecute people involved in crimes like armed robbery, kidnapping and other forms of crimes.

During its formation the Special Anti-Robbery Squad was known to operate covertly. SARS operatives were not allowed to wear police uniform, publicly carry guns or have walkie-talkies. They were given unmarked vehicles with sometimes no license plates or private plate numbers during duty.