The Nigerian Police Force has said no member of the now-defunct Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) will be a part of the newly formed Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team.
Arising from a very intense protest that has lasted for days, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, dissolved the popular subunit of the force, SARS.
Two days after disbanding SARS, the IGP set up a SWAT unit, however, this move did not go down well with those who had protested for the dissolution of the anti-robbery squad, causing them to change the mantra from #EndSARS to #EndSWAT.
In a bid to throw more light on the new unit set up by the IGP, the police in a statement via Twitter stated that their mandate will be, however, rather than refer to them as SWAT.
Police spokesman Frank Mba, who put out the statement used the phrase ‘Tactical Team’.
It is unclear if the Police have changed the name of the newly constituted unit from SWAT to Tactical Team, but the spokesman said no operative of SARS will be included in the new team.
He also noted that the operations of the Tactical Team will be strictly intelligence-driven. Members of the new Tactical Team are also expected not to embark on routine patrols.
They are barred from the indiscriminate and unlawful search of phones, laptops, and other smart devices.
Mr. Mba’s statement also asserted that those who will be members of the new Tactical Team must be free of any pending disciplinary matter especially those that touch on misuse of firearms and abuse of human rights.
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