Security

“We will not compel any police officer to return to duty” – Police service commission #ENDSARS

Published

3 years ago

2020/11/01

The Police Service Commission (PSC) has stated that it would not compel any police officer to return to duty.

Thousands of Nigerians marched across cities to demand an end to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, or SARS, a police unit accused of extrajudicial killings and abuses.

After the protest, hoodlums hijacked the process leading to the deaths of over 20 police officers allegedly killed by hoodlums and dozens of stations set ablaze.

The PSC said this on Sunday in a statement by Ikechukwu Ani, its head of media and public affairs.

The statement was in reaction to a newspaper publication which stated that the commission had threatened to dismiss officers who failed to return to work.

The commission said the report was false, saying that it would be most insensitive for the commission to dismiss any police man who doesn’t return to work.

Protests turned violent mainly after the army shot at peaceful protesters at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos.

Some of the property destroyed by the hoodlums were the BRT station with buses, TV Continental (TVC), Adekunle police station, Herbert Macaulay Yaba and Lagos City Mall amongst others.

NewsWireNGR recalls that the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, had also on Friday, begged personnel of the force to return to their duty posts.

The IGP made the appeal while addressing his men at the Federal Capital Territory command in Abuja immediately after he returned from assessment tour to various police facilities destroyed by the hoodlums during #EndSARS protests.

He also charged them to protect themselves against any assault at their respective duty posts.

He said his move to embark upon the tour was to boost the morale of officers who have abandoned the streets for the past few days sequel to various attacks suffered by the security operatives in various states.

According to him, the #EndSARS protesters were out to demoralise the personnel, adding that government and the Nigerian Police Force would soon roll out package for their welfare and those who have lost their lives during the nationwide protests.