Six years after #EndSARS protest, Nigerian youths still suffer police brutality

Six years after the #EndSARS protests, Nigerian youths still suffer police brutality and high-handedness, raising questions about the effectiveness of the country’s police reforms and the accountability of security personnel.

The anniversary of the October 8 2020 protests, which culminated in the fatal shootings and subsequent death of no fewer than 56 people across the country at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos, has renewed calls by rights groups for justice for victims, compensation for survivors and fundamental changes in how police officers exercise their powers.

The protests were driven by years of complaints against the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), whose operatives were accused of profiling young Nigerians, unlawful detention, extortion, torture and extrajudicial killings.

Although the government disbanded SARS in October 2020, campaigners say the structural problems that fuelled the protests have not been adequately addressed.

The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre (RULAAC), in a statement marking the sixth anniversary on Tuesday, said police impunity remained a major concern, arguing that the country needed consistent enforcement of existing laws and demonstrable changes in police conduct rather than repeated announcements of reforms.

The group said the Lekki Toll Gate shootings remained a defining symbol of the breakdown of trust between citizens and the state, with unresolved questions about the use of force against protesters and accountability for human rights violations.

“The central question six years after #EndSARS is therefore not whether reforms were announced, but whether policing has become more lawful, professional, humane and accountable,” RULAAC wrote. “The available evidence shows that the gap between promise and practice remains dangerously wide.”

Since the protests, authorities have introduced measures intended to improve policing, including the Police Act 2020 and changes to police regulations and training. However, rights advocates argue that these measures have yet to produce the fundamental change in police-citizen relations demanded by protesters.

“Redeployment is not accountability, and changing the name of a police unit is not institutional reform,” RULAAC maintained.

RULAAC also said the Police Act 2020, the Anti-Torture Act 2017, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 and corresponding state laws provided safeguards against arbitrary arrest, unlawful detention, torture and other abuses. But argued that everyday police practices continued to fall short of those legal protections.

Among the practices it identified were arrests before investigations, police involvement in civil disputes and debt recovery, prolonged detention without lawful justification, denial of access to lawyers and relatives, coercive interrogation and demands for unlawful payments as conditions for bail or release.

Amnesty International Nigeria had also reported in October 2024 that it continued to receive reports of police human rights violations, including unlawful detention, extortion, torture, sexual violence and alleged extrajudicial killings.

The organisation said the failure to implement judicial-panel recommendations and hold suspected perpetrators accountable had undermined efforts to end police abuse. It also called for compensation for victims and their families.

 Lekki shootings remain unresolved

The Lekki Toll Gate shootings of October 20, 2020, remain the most enduring symbol of the #EndSARS movement.

On that night, Nigerian security forces opened fire on protesters gathered at the toll gate in Lagos. The incident triggered widespread condemnation and intensified demands for an independent investigation into the use of force and the deaths and injuries reported during the protests.

The Lagos State Judicial Panel of Inquiry subsequently investigated the incident and made findings and recommendations concerning the shootings and other alleged abuses during the protests. The findings, including the panel’s conclusions on the Lekki incident, became the subject of continuing dispute between authorities and campaigners.

In July 2024, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Court of Justice found Nigeria responsible for serious human rights violations arising from the Lekki Toll Gate incident and ordered measures relating to accountability and redress.

However, rights organisation REDRESS said implementation of reparations and accountability measures had remained slow and inconsistent, with survivors and campaigners continuing to press for enforcement of the judgment.

The anniversary therefore comes amid renewed demands for the authorities to acknowledge the harm suffered by protesters, provide effective remedies and ensure that violations by security personnel are investigated and punished where established.

Calls for justice, comprehensive reform

Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) on Tuesday called on the Federal Government and Lagos State Government to issue a public apology over the shootings, prosecute those responsible and provide comprehensive reparations to victims.

The organisation also urged political parties and candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections to make justice for victims and meaningful police reform key campaign commitments.

For campaigners, the central issue six years after #EndSARS is whether the country can move beyond commemorations and promises to establish a policing system that protects citizens, respects constitutional rights and holds officers accountable for misconduct.

The anniversary has again placed the relationship between Nigeria’s police and the public under scrutiny, with rights groups insisting that justice for victims and credible reform remain necessary to rebuild trust.

For many Nigerians who participated in the protests or supported their demands, the test of reform is not the number of policies introduced but whether citizens can interact with law enforcement officers without fear of harassment, extortion, arbitrary detention or violence.