#EndSARS and the Crisis of Governance in Nigeria

#EndSARS is not just one massive protest for police reform or even for democratic accountability. It is a reckoning meant to counter the crisis in governance whilst the looting which happened in the aftermath of the protests is a catharsis.

Written by Promise Frank Ejiofor

Dec 22, 2020

Police shoot in a residential area during a state-wide curfew, a day after the 20 October 2020 shootings. Adekunle, Yaba. Lagos, Nigeria. AYANFE OLARINDE

When we revolt it is not for a particular culture. We revolt simply because, for many reasons, we can no longer breathe.’

— Frantz Fanon

On October 3, 2020, a video trended on social media showing a Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) police officer fatally shoot a man in Delta State. Such brutalism—not entirely new to young Nigerians, especially as police brutality is an everyday occurrence in Nigeria—not only made visible the abuse of power by law enforcement but also engendered mass protests for reform under the banner of #EndSARS. But police brutality is not a uniquely Nigerian phenomenon; it is a global occurrence affecting all political regimes—whether authoritarian, competitive authoritarian, or democratic. In many cases, the perpetrators—usually law enforcement officers—of these gruesome acts are unaccountable for the brutality unleashed on civilians. In this respect, the #EndSARS protests must be construed not so much as peculiar to Nigeria but as part of a global movement toward curbing the excesses of police power.

Although the hashtag ‘EndSARS’ appeared as far back as 2017, its apogee seems to be the October 2020 protests. Besides demanding the abolishment of SARS, protesters have demanded the prosecution of accused police officers, the release of arrested protesters, compensations for families of deceased victims of police brutality, the establishment of an independent body to investigate police brutality, and increased compensation to police officers to enable them to do their jobs without corruption. But is #EndSARS just about police brutality? Anyone conversant with the multifarious histories, sentiments, and narratives of grievance in Nigeria would agree that the rationale for the protests traverse the eradication of brutality and reflect instead a deep-seated crisis in governance. Indeed, the #EndSARS protests and their aftermaths are a reckoning—a reaction, a newfound awareness, and sensitivity to police brutality in particular, and the corrupt political institutions in general, which have wreaked havoc on young people despite the nation’s enormous wealth and political clout within and beyond the African continent.

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About the Author

Promise Frank Ejiofor

holds an MPhil in Social Anthropology from Trinity College, University of Cambridge. His research interests lie at the intersection of nationalism, citizenship, ethnic politics, and international security.

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#EndSARS and the Crisis of Governance in Nigeria