EndSARS: Breaking “Law 47”

The #EndSARS protest started off as a well organised protest with the pure intent of bringing an end to all forms of police brutality, especially that of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, a special unit of the Nigeria Police Force,  specially trained to tackle robbery cases initially, and later extended to internet crimes (yahoo-yahoo), kidnapping and other violent crimes.

This unit having been specially trained and allowed to carry guns and operate without uniform regrettably metamorphosed into some kind of mafia that terrorised innocent Nigerians in all sort of ways; from extortion and harassment, to raping and injuring them and worse of all killing these innocent souls.

Not long after, the overzealous behaviours of the officers became unbearable as they turned against innocent civilians in the name of fighting internet crimes, something I am not sure is part of their schedule. But with level of joblessness among the youths, destitution coupled with frustration, it is only normal for these young Nigerians to react.

Fortunately for these protesters, the government listened to their grievances by hastily disbanding the unit in question and accepted to look into the 5-point demands of the protesters which include compensating the victims of the SARS’ brutality, prosecution of the bad eggs among SARS’ officials and improving the welfare of the police as a whole, among others.

Despite the swift response of the government, the protest continued, and for some of us the trust deficit that exists between the citizens and the government due to empty promises of successive governments to the citizens could also be a factor.

Consequent upon which the EndSARS protesters broke Law 47 of the 48 Laws of Power which says; “Do not go past the mark you aimed for; In victory, Learn when to stop!” 

If the protesters had suspended the protest after tabling their grievances and demands to the government, things wouldn’t have turned as sour as they are now. 

The persistence of the protesters cost Nigeria as a whole a lot; from the protesters blocking roads for the common man, denying them the access to go about with their normal lives, to hoodlums who have hijacked the protest, destroying and setting ablaze public and private properties, breaking into prisons to free hundreds of inmates and looting of government office(s) and a palace, to the controversial Lekki Toll Gate massacre which left many injured and lives lost (reportedly) and now degenerating into ethno religious crisis incited by bigots – what we all dread the most, for its consequences will be far worse than the police brutality being protested.

The protesters should have cherished their moment of victory, when the government listened to them, because that is something that seldom happen in Nigeria. They should have known where to draw the mark and stay within its limit, because going too far attracts more enemies than already defeated, as Robert Greene says “The moment of victory is often a moment of greatest peril. In the heat of victory, arrogance and overconfidence can push you past the goal you had aimed for, and by going too far, you make more enemies than you defeat. Do not allow success to go into your head. There’s no substitute for strategy and careful planning. Set a goal, and when you reach it, stop.”

Sadiya Madu Gwary,

Department of Political Science,

Federal University, Gashua

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