Human Rights Commission Recommends Dismissal Of 35 SARS Operatives

The National Human Rights Commission, NHRC has recommended the trial and dismissal of 35 operatives of the defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS after they were indicted for various misconducts. The recommendation was contained in a report sent to the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami.

According to the Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Mr. Tony Ojukwu the list of the indicted operatives was accompanied alongside the full report of the Special Presidential Panel on SARS to guide the prosecution of the indicted operatives.

However, the report recommended the payment of compensation ranging from N500, 000 to N20million, to some of the identified victims, as well as to families of deceased victims and also asked the Nigerian Police Force to tender an apology to the victims via Newspaper publications.

It was gathered that the NHRC looked into reported cases of infractions of SARS operatives in Lagos, Imo, Akwa-Ibom, Benue, Enugu, Gombe, Kaduna, Kogi, Kwara, Ogun, Rivers State and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja.

Reacting to the reports, the Minister of Justice, Malami said his office would do justice to the list through prosecution of the indicted SARS operatives.

Malami noted that President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration has demonstrated effective consciousness of the need to establish and entrench a constitutional program to take care of the collective interest that will incorporate the interest of the victim of crime, the nation and the individual involved.

According to the AGF, one of the steps taken by the federgovernment is the Police Act 2020, which he described as a piece of legislation established to ensure that necessary reforms are brought into Police Force.