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Scrapping SARS ‘ll lead to Anarchy, says Alhaji Balogun

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7 years ago

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The campaign for disbandment of the Special Ant-Robbery Squad, (SARS) of the Nigeria Police Force has been on for the past few weeks because of the operatives’ complicity, excesses and sometimes unprofessional activities. Alhaji Olayinka Balogun, a lawyer who retired in 2012 in Benin, Edo State as Commissioner of Police, in this interview with BIYI ADEG0ROYE, gives retrospective dimension to the matter and offers some suggestions

What is the historical basis for the establishment of the Special Anti Robbery Squad?
Following the end of the Nigerian Civil war, there was an increase in armed robbery and other violent crimes due to proliferation of arms. So the political leadership and the police hierarchy saw the need to set up a special force to address the situation. Don’t forget that even as at then the various police commands already had their respective Anti-Robbery Section at the State Criminal Investigations Departments (SCIDs). In those days, those ones just came around to handle such cases because the level was not sophisticated for them to move out. They were placed under the Commissioner of Police as at then and expectedly, they made a lot of inroads into anti-robbery operations. Of course, you can remember what happened in Lagos during Col. Buba Marwa’s time, and the successes recorded gives further justification for the existence of the squad. And it went on like that such that it became a very big organization fighting mainly armed robbery and other major violent crimes.

In other words, you recognize that SARS played a major role in handling violent crimes?
Yes, there is no doubt about that, and that informed its formation in the first place.

How then do you see the call for the disbandment of SARS, on the grounds of murder, torture and human rights abuses?
Well, it is a reaction to the excesses of some of SARS operatives like murder and those infractions you have mentioned. But the issue of scrapping it does not arise at all. We cannot scrap SARS because of the excesses of a handful of operatives. All that is required is to ensure adequate monitoring and checks. Operatives of SARS have a lot of powers and mind you, they are trained to engage armed robbers. So all that is required is to ensure they operate within the ambit of the law.
One point that must be recognized is that SARS is a special wing of the police made up of brave, volunteer police officers. Only very brave and daring officers move to SARS. A lot of them lose their lives there, leaving their dependants behind. Hence, it is a place for very loyal and serious- minded officers. If, by any chance, some miscreants find their way into the squad, that must be dealt with.
One of the things we need to do is to appoint officers with integrity, respect for law and human rights, officers that are ready to work as head of SARS in each of the SCIDs. Then we need to weed out the bad eggs there, and those who have over-stayed, because actually a number of them have stayed there for four, five, six years or more. They are no longer useful there. Some of them even have the wrong motive for going there – for material benefits or whatever they can acquire. Some of them are really bad; there is no doubt about that.
But that is no sufficient reason for calling its scrapping. It is like saying we should scrap the police – or that we should scrap the Nigeria Customs Service, because some officers there are corrupt or sorts. You can imagine the far-reaching consequences that will come with that. Even among journalists, we have good ones and bad ones as well. Even in the family, we have various types of people and do you disown such people because you want to address a problem? What we need to do is to reorganize the place and inject new hands.

I am aware there are some departments in the police that serve as internal control mechanism?
Look, unlike other organizations, the police have its internal cleansing system. There is the anti-corruption unit like the X-Squad. For instance, at the divisional level, if a policeman errs, the DPO takes action and ensures that he is tried orderly room and appropriate action is taken within a week. The same thing is applicable to men of the anti-robbery section. The Commissioner of Police and the Provost are there to handle that. That is the way it is in all formations in the Force. So if bold and professional officers are given the headship of the place things will improve.

A few days ago, 30 SARS members were reportedly arrested for extortion and sundry crimes. Do you see this as one of the measures to clean up the place?
It is one of the efforts to clean up the place no doubt, except that I see that as an unnecessary fire brigade approach. We want to avoid playing to the gallery. I want a situation where there is result-oriented, sustained efforts to ensure sanity in SARS. I was Deputy Commissioner at SCID, Panti in Lagos and what we had to avoid was this issue of abuse. A situation where complainant will leave Police Division, Area Command to take a case of fraud to SARS and they accept it for investigation? That to me is an absurdity. It is not in their purview at all. Sometimes, you see them arresting people in the night; you see SARS men forcing themselves into people’s homes at midnight, and at the end of the day you will discover that they were there to arrest somebody over issuance of dud cheque! What is their business with that? Ironically, a lot of them do this because of monetary benefits and all that, thereby giving the force a bad name. All those policemen are the ones giving the police a bad name.
When those types of complaints come up the IGP and Commissioners of Police should act promptly to address them. When a child errs, do you wait for somebody else before you take action? You don’t even wait for his mother, before you spank the child immediately. In as much as I don’t mind the current protest, I want to say that these are things that have been happening over time and built up to this moment.
As a practising lawyer and a retired Commissioner of Police, I want to say that a situation where SARS operatives handle cases of debt recovery of as low as N500,000 or N1 million, which are outside their purview, or are reprehensible in human rights violations. I find that very repugnant. It is like a case of PMF. You don’t see a mobile policeman until issues get out of hand. Regular policeman will go about his general duty stuff, but when you call a Mopol, you know the situation has changed. That is the case with SARS. When SARS people step into a matter, you know it is a major one. I remember the days of Uwaneroro; Amusa Bello and so many of them like that who made their names in the police as anti-robbery officers.
So my position is that this re-organisation should be sustained, rather than being a flash-in-the- pan thing that will be abandoned after all these reactions must have died down. Now, I must add that Nigerians should be very courageous too in handling the SARS thing. When they come to their houses, they must be ready to ask questions and put up some resistance. Ask him: ‘do I look like a robber? I‘m afraid, I cannot follow you. Can you call your DPO? Can I speak with your Area Commander? I’m not following you.’ Nigerians should be bold to do so.
I can send you some complaint messages from the public. Look, anti-robbery people don’t invite people. Do you invite killers? Rather they respond to robbery operations and investigate same. They don’t sit in their offices and invite suspects. To come and do what? That is because of the fierce nature of their operation – confronting armed robbers.

What do you make of situations where some SARS people are working for politicians like it happened in Rivers State during the last elections?
It is not possible to say that SARS operatives are working for politicians. The issue is that any policeman posted to any state command is supposed to be working for the state government. You know that the state government is personified by the state governor; everything the Commissioner of Police in the state requires to fight crime comes from the state governor. How many Armoured Personnel Carriers are coming from the Force Headquarters? How many patrol vehicles are coming from Force Head Quarters? For that reason, there must be some rapport between the Commissioner of Police, members of SARS and the government. If there is a serious robbery incident in a state for instance, the first person the Commissioner will report to after informing the IGP is the governor, especially if it involved a very prominent person and so on. It is that rapport that the opponents are blowing out of proportion.

Did you read the INEC report that indicted the Officer in Charge of SARS during the election held in Rivers State last year?
Yes, I read the report, but was that the full report? Have you heard from the policemen? When you indict somebody, it means you accuse him of an offence and that does not make it true. It is either the IGP investigates or the state government does before it can be authenticated. By and large, SARS operatives and officers must exhibit high degree of professionalism wherever they are sent to serve. I must also tell you that are some cases, some governors tell the IGP to deploy a particular officer to his state- that this is the person he wants to work with. If the relationship goes on fine, good, if not there will be problem.
What I am saying as a retired Commissioner of Police who had worked with many IGPs and some governors is that there must be some bad elements in the force, but what is most important is the leadership which must ensure that the bad ones are either reformed or flushed out no matter where he comes from.

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EFCC Bursts Syndicate of 792 Cryptocurrency Investment, Romance Fraud Suspects in Lagos … Arrests 193 Chinese, Arabs, Filipinos, Others

Published

3 days ago

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December 18, 2024

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The Executive Chairman  of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, has  disclosed that the Commission, in a landmark raid,  arrested 792 suspects  for their alleged involvement in cryptocurrency investment fraud and romance scam.

The  suspects were apprehended on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, in a surprise operation at their hideout, an imposing seven-storey edifice known as Big Leaf Building, on No.7, Oyin Jolayemi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos , following verifiable intelligence received by the Commission.

Speaking during a media briefing on Monday, December 16, 2024,   at the Lagos  Zonal Directorate of the Commission, Olukoyede stated that  148 Chinese, 40 Filipinos, two Kharzartans, one Pakistani, one Indonesian were arrested during the operation.

The EFCC’s boss,  who spoke though the Director, Public Affairs, EFCC, Commander of the EFCC,  CEWilson Uwujaren, further stated that the  foreign nationals used the facility, which could be mistaken for a corporate headquarters of a financial establishment, to train their Nigerian accomplices on how to initiate romance and investment scams and also used the identities of their Nigerian accomplices to perpetrate their criminal activities.

According to him, “All the floors are equipped with high-end desktop computers. On the 5th floor alone, investigators recovered 500 SIM cards of local telcos that were bought for criminal purposes.

“ Their Nigerian accomplices were recruited by the foreign kingpins to prospect for victims online through phishing, targeting mostly Americans, Canadians, Mexicans, and several others from European countries.

“They usually arm them with desktop computers and mobile devices and create fake profiles for them.

“The Nigerian accomplices are equally provided with logs that allow them access to foreign communication lines and victims, which they chat with on WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram.”

While giving  further details about the modus operandi of the syndicate, the EFCC Chair said the Nigerian accomplices, who are assigned WhatsApp accounts linked to foreign telephone numbers, especially from Germany and Italy, engage victims in romantic conversations as well as phantom business and investment discussions to trick them to shop on the purported online investment shopping platform called www.yooto.com.

He added: “For those who show interest, activation fees for an account on the platform starts from $35USD.

“Investigation revealed that the criterion for recruiting these young Nigerians is proficiency in the use of computers, especially typing skill. Those who passed the test are given desktop computers and mobile devices and then taken through a two-week induction on how to personate foreign females in romance scam chats and convince victims to invest in their employers’ cryptocurrency investment scam.

“Once the Nigerians are able to win the confidence of would-be victims, the foreigners would take over the actual task of defrauding the victims and proceed to block their Nigerian accomplices from the network. This would then leave them in the dark about the transaction.”

He, however, said the Nigerians involved in the alleged fraudulent activities “do not know the owners of the ‘company’ they work for because they are not offered letters of appointments or receive payment from a corporate account.”

According to him, the  suspected Nigerian accomplices are usually paid either in cash or through an individual’s account.

Olukoyede said the Commission was working with its foregoing partners to establish the extent of the scam and the accomplices as well as the likelihood of any collaboration with organized international fraud cells.

The EFCC Chair also used the occasion to debunk the notion that Nigerians are behind the tonnes of frauds emanating from the country.

“Foreigners are taking advantage of our nation’s unfortunate reputation as a haven of frauds to establish a foothold here to disguise their atrocious criminal enterprises. But, as this operation has shown, there will be no hiding places for criminals in Nigeria,”he said.

Also speaking during the occasion , the acting Zonal Director, Lagos Zonal Directorate of the Commission, Michael Wetkas, sought greater collaboration with the media in the fight against  corruption and economic and financial crimes.

Items recovered from the suspects include desktop computers, mobile phones, laptop computers and cars at the point of arrest.

The suspects will be charged to court after investigations are concluded.

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Kogi Governor Ododo Allegedly Spends N400million To Build ‘Intruders Gate’, Another N439million To Produce Staff Of Office For Chiefs

Published

2 weeks ago

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December 4, 2024

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About N400million was spent by the Governor Usman Ododo’s administration in Kogi State for the construction of what was tagged “Intruders gate”, a copy of the 2024 state budget performance report obtained by SaharaReporters has revealed.

An intruders gate, also known as a security gate or anti-climb gate, is a type of gate designed to prevent unauthorised access to a property, building, or restricted area.

The primary purpose of such gate is to provide an additional layer of security and protection against potential intruders.

The budget document seen by SaharaReporters showed that the Governor Ododo-led government had in the last 9 months spent N398,817,976.33 on “intruders gate instead of the N100,00,000 appropriated and approved in the 2024 budget by the Kogi State House of Assembly.

This suggested that N298,817,976.33 was allegedly illegally spent above the budget ceiling on such gate.

However, where the gate was mounted by the government wasn’t disclosed in the document.

A further check on the report revealed that N439,500,000.00 has so far been spent in 2024 for the “production of customised staff of office for graded chiefs” in the state.

These spendings are coming at a time when residents of the state like other Nigerians are going through a spike in cost of living, hardship and hunger.

Earlier, SaharaReporters reported how the Ododo-led government spent N2.9billion for the Government House minor capital works and remodelling government house between January and September 2024.

The review showed that while the state budgeted N100 million for government house minor capital works, it has ended up spending N784 million within nine months.

Also while the government budgeted N962million for remodeling government house structure, it has spent N2.2 billion within nine months.

The review further showed that based on the details published by the state government, it has continued to overshoot budgetary allocations.

For instance, N50million was budgeted for renovation of Speakers’, honourable members residential quarters, within nine months however N58.7 million was spent.

Renovation of honourable speaker and deputy speakers lodge stood at a budgeted amount of N50 million , however N52 million was spent within nine months.

Maintenance of the Secretary to the State Government’s official residence and landscaping stood at a budget of N10million, however within nine months N13.8million was spent.

Construction of Mosque and Chapel in the government house was budgeted at N25 million, however the state spent N86.4 million within nine months.

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Audit report reveals CBN’s non-disclosure of $40.23bn in reserves, policy violations under Emefiele’s tenure

Published

3 weeks ago

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December 3, 2024

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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) failed to disclose details of the nation’s external reserves, valued at $40.23 billion, in its 2021 financial year report, as stated in the latest findings from the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation.

The 2021 audit report, released in December 2024, further exposed violations of internal policies on dollar time deposits by the CBN under the leadership of Godwin Emefiele.

Emefiele, whose tenure as CBN governor ended in June 2023, is currently facing charges by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The EFCC accuses him of obtaining $6.2 million under false pretenses, using a forged letter purportedly from the Secretary to the Government of the Federation dated January 26, 2023.

The letter allegedly requested a contingent logistics advance from the CBN, which Emefiele falsely claimed was authorized by the president.

The audit also scrutinized the CBN’s adherence to its revised Investment Policy, raising additional concerns about financial management during the period under review.

“For the year 2021 financial year, the Bank failed to publish the position amounting to US$40,230,803,228.80 of the country’s external reserves to the public,” the report stated.

The report further noted that there was no waiver or new policy introduced during the period that could explain the non-disclosure of the external reserves.

It attributed the failure to weaknesses in the internal control systems at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The report also pointed out that this lack of transparency violated Article 15(v) of the CBN’s revised Investment Policy, which mandates the Bank to define the content, form, and frequency of reports on external reserves to ensure transparency.

The Auditor General expressed concerns about the significant risks associated with this breach, including a lack of accountability, diminished transparency, and potential harm to Nigeria’s economic credibility.

The report cautioned that foreign investors are not sufficiently informed about the country’s economic status, which could undermine investor confidence.

In response to the audit query, the management of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) stated that “information on the external reserves position is available to members of the public on the Bank’s website under the Reserve Management tab.”

The report also mentioned that the Central Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), which convenes every two months, provides updates on the reserves.

However, the Auditor General’s assessment concluded that the bank’s response did not effectively address the fundamental issue at hand.

“The response from the Management failed to address the issue raised,” the report said, maintaining that its findings remain valid.

The Auditor General’s report recommended that the CBN governor be summoned before the National Assembly’s Public Accounts Committees to explain the failure to publish the reserves.

It also called for potential sanctions under the Financial Regulations Act of 2009, citing serious misconduct.

Additionally, the report suggested that “sanctions relating to gross misconduct prescribed in paragraph 3129 of the Financial Regulations 2009, should apply.”

The audit also uncovered a violation of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Money Market Policy, in addition to the non-publication of reserves figures. It revealed that a $26.05 million dollar time deposit exceeded the mandated maximum maturity period of three months, rolling over for five months without the required waivers.

This deposit, made on October 21, 2021, matured on March 21, 2022, in direct contravention of internal policies designed to manage liquidity and credit risks.

The Auditor-General attributed this breach to weaknesses in the CBN’s internal control systems.

In its defense, the central bank argued that its policies allow for extensions of up to one year for specific transactions, asserting that the dollar deposit was in compliance with these provisions.

However, the Auditor-General rejected this explanation, pointing to insufficient evidence to support the bank’s claims.

The report recommended that the CBN governor appear before the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly to justify both the failure to publish reserves and the extension of the dollar deposit’s maturity.

Additionally, it called for sanctions against the CBN under the Financial Regulations Act of 2009 for gross misconduct.

“The CBN Governor should be requested to: Furnish the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly with the evidence of approval to extend the maximum maturity period of US$26,051,039.29 deposit of the CBN for five months instead of three months, and Otherwise, sanctions relating to gross misconduct prescribed in paragraph 3129 of the Financial Regulations 2009, should apply,” it said.

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