Popular Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka has come out to say that Amotekun must not be allowed to turn into another special anti-robbery squad, SARS.

Wole Soyinka recently revealed this when he featured on Arise Television programme hours ago.

According to him, the Western Nigeria Security Network, Amotekun should be trained frequently to prevent them from becoming a pain in the citizen’s neck.

He added that the mind of Amotekun officials must be trained and the members of the public also have a role to play.

His words, “I have told them anytime you want us to come and assist, we will come even if it is just on the ethical session so that as you are training them to defend us, we are also training their minds so that Amotekun does not become another SARS, very important. We must do everything together.

“It is about time the public examined itself; what are we made up of? Are there those among us who, if they got into power, will behave exactly as those kinds of agencies which we are repudiating and against which we are protesting? There is absolutely no excuse for the brutality that occurred in the wake of the noise, rumour, reality of people being shot at the Lekki tollgate.”

What do you think?

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.