Nigerians again take to the street to protest against the continual existence of FSARS, the pages of the social media are filled with messages calling for a complete withdrawal of the agency from the face of the nation’s existence. The handwriting is clear, the emotions are high and raw, it’s either the federal government listen to the will of the people or go against this by bringing back this agency to continue to terrorize the Nigerian youths.
Take a break and check the pages of the social media and check the various aggressive and inhumane activities of this special agency, they were designed to be a friend who were designed and established to curb crime in the nation, against their creation they have turned to a predator who have led to the death of hundreds of the nation’s youths. Lives had been lost greatly as a result of their disregard to the law, people feel threatened with their very existence. How do you expect when the most morally conscious of us have to walk the streets of the nation with fears over the activities of this agency whose only need to see you dress or look good to arrest you and cart you away inside a Sienna bus where you fate will be sealed by them.
Agencies like this are meant and created to exist within the purview of our National existence by creating a mutual relationship based on respect for the society in the course of the dispatch of their duties in the nation. What they have been able to do is the opposite which is creating and instilling fear on the minds of various Nigeria. An agency meant to safeguard the populace but are doing the opposite deserves no chance on the pages of our national existence.
We must not shy away from the fact that crime rates, especially cyber crimes has soared high in the nation over the past one decades and the government as well as the people have every right to be critical and worried over this realities. We do understand that there’s a need for them to checkmate and curb these excesses which is being exhibited by a section of the Nigerian youths.
The average Nigerian youth is one filled with hope and a sheer determination which is backed up by a firm resolve and determination cum commitment to surviving against the odds. Nigerians against the popular saying that they are lazy are one of the most industrious set of people you can ever find on the surface of the earth. Nigerian realities are hard rough and tough, yet they have redefined themselves to adapting with the course of the nation’s development making themselves of high values by filling several gaps in the nation which have aided the nation identity on the global sphere.
We must not because of the activities of a few unscrupulous elements deny other Nigerians who are filled with vigor and strength to making a name for themselves riding on the wings of a morally conscious being by taking away live or a reason to try in Nigeria.
We cannot solve a problem by creating another, this is what the Federal Government of Nigeria has been able to achieve so far with this agency. In their bid to curbing crimes in Nigeria, they have created a monster, a terrifying one who is hell bent on reducing the numbers of the youthful populace of the nation.
We must take a look back and recent on the yearnings of the people, all they are saying is that their lives are sacred and it must be respected and not treated like that of chickens who can be taken to the slaughter anytime.
While we pause to do this, we must also look at other ways through which we can curb these societal problems without putting men of this agency on our streets again.
There are various and numerous options and alternatives which can be considered without having to go on another reform of the agency as done in the past three instances when they were disbanded but we’re later brought back after the claims that the agency has been reformed; their later activities proved and showed that they were never reformed.
Highlighted below are some of the viable alternatives which the Nigerian federal government can use in putting an end to this raging societal ill which is threatening the nation.
- Reward Hard-work – there’s a need for the Nigerian Nation to go back to a system that rewards hard work. Our realities have been veiled with a consciousness that hard work is old fashioned. The youth believes in a reality where they believe that they can cut short cuts to making wealth. There are hundreds of Nigerian youths who are out there making positive waves in the nation. Right from the home, we must celebrate the virtues of hard-work. We must give our youths more reason to chase wealth the right way. When we encourage them to this this, there will be little or no need for the structure to have a need for agencies like FSARS.
- Gainfully Engagement of the Youths- many Nigeria youths have taken to crimes because they have no other means of livelihood, it is high time we create an industrial society where our youths can fill in the gaps opened by the existence of these industries. Cyber crimes are on the rise because many find it the last resort of survival, we can correct this by bringing up initiatives that will support and encourage the growth of small and medium scale business enterprise. We must bring up agencies that will see to the identification of talents right from the primary schools and see to their nurturing and harnessing of these potentials.
- Build Agencies on Ideologies- the Nigerian realities is in a great mess because it is one that is runner without a clear cut ideological framework and this will also affect it components units and sub component units. The federal government needs to see that Agencies established by it are done based on firm ideological framework which the members or the personnel working under these Agencies must buy and key into. Their must be a uniformity of purpose and mission. It’s very much easier for the morally deprived men of the FSARS to violate the dignity of others because they are not built on a firm ideological framework. When they understand the dignity of the human life and the need for respect which only can be gotten when they are employed and trained based on ideologies, there will be a difference.
- Check and Balances- we must remind ourselves, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. When an agency has no check and balances, when it has no one to checkmate it excesses, their case will definitely be like that of a dog who ignores the warning of his owner, it will definitely get lost. Agencies with sensitive roles like that of the FSARS must not be allowed to exist without a firm and functional check and balances or body that can check mate it actions.
By Marcus Amudipe