The FUNAAB student’s suicide

SEYI Akinade, a 400 level zoology student of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Ogun State, has allegedly terminated his own life by drinking a substance suspected to be sniper over a debt of $20,000. The source of the huge debt is not quite clear, but judging from what the deceased reportedly posted on his Twitter account, which in the circumstance could pass for a suicide note, he was an online foreign exchange (forex) trader who suffered avoidable losses because many of his transactions/deals were truncated by incessant police harassment and torture. The last straw that broke the camel’s back was his recent arrest, together with 16 others, by officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Abeokuta, who handcuffed the accused like violent criminals and allegedly subjected them to other forms of inhuman treatment on their way to Ibara police station and at the station.

The alleged offence was that the deceased was a cybercriminal, even though the security agents could not pin anything on him to substantiate their claim when they scrutinised the history of his conversations and exchanges with other parties on his cell phone and laptop. Yet, the police allegedly demanded N200,000 from him in order to secure his freedom with a threat to ‘waste’ him if he became too inquisitive.  If this narrative is correct, there was an unsavoury situation of a young Nigerian throwing in the towel after being falsely accused of cybercrime but not before detailing the chilling encounter with the operatives of SARS.

Sadly, the young man was allegedly in the middle of yet another forex transaction during his last arrest and was unable to close the deal and that perhaps led to the accumulation of a debt of $20,000. The SARS operatives reportedly seized his laptop and cell phone under the pretext that forex trading was a scam. And as always, the SARS apprehension, harassment and alleged torture of the 17 young men, including Seyi Akinade, had nothing to do with the pursuit of the noble goal of a crime-free society by steering supposedly misguided youths away from the path of criminality. On the contrary, their motivation was filthy lucre: this came to the fore when a ransom of N200,000 was allegedly placed on each of the 17 suspects in order for them to regain their liberty. Unfortunately, the deceased, who most probably had been a victim of this manner of harassment and extortion time and again, could no longer cope, and he chose to take a precipitate action that culminated in an irreversible damage. It is very sad indeed.

Meanwhile, the Police Public Relations Officer, Ogun State, has put up a spurious defence, saying the policemen implicated in the dastardly act were not likely to have come from Ibara police station, as if that is of any importance. The veritable issue is not whether the police were from Ibara police station or not but that the monster which SARS represents has continued to bare its fangs with reckless abandon, inflicting both physical and emotional pain on innocent citizens, notwithstanding the strident public disapproval of its uncivilised activities.

Even if the deceased was a fraudster, were SARS operatives supposed to arrest and extort him? Why is it difficult for the operatives to concentrate on tackling violent crimes, which was SARS’ raison d’être in the first place? Or is internet fraud within the province of the definition of violent crimes? And was the N200,000 those arrested were asked to pay a fine? Would the money go into the public coffers or private pockets? Was that judgment money? Are the police now the court of law? These are posers that the leadership of the police must provide answers to while taking pragmatic steps to reform the outfit and make amends. It  would be tantamount to playing the ostrich if the leadership of the force at all levels pretends  that these bare-faced extortions that citizens witness the police engaging in daily on the roads, streets and police stations do not happen.

Somehow, and sadly so,  corruption and indiscipline are so well entrenched in the police force that successive leaderships of the organisation have been unable to make any significant impact to rein in sleaze.  Or how do you describe the continued existence of SARS in its present form in a civilised society? Even when its atrocities drew the attention of then Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, strong policy pronouncements were made on changes to the operations of SARS but apparently, none of the policies has been implemented in a way that would enable the attainment of the desired end.

To be sure, the forex trade which the deceased was engaged in does not breach any known law of the land. It is a legitimate business, yet the undisciplined and corrupt officers of SARS allegedly treated him harshly. The police authorities are urged to review the roles played by the officials in the untimely death of Seyi Akinade. Parents too are enjoined to cultivate the habit of monitoring their children so as to be able to come to their aid when they are undergoing depression. Ironically, it is the belief in some quarters that the SARS operatives hardly harass the real internet fraudsters, except those who are yet to put them on their payroll.  Certainly, the police image requires intense burnishing because its operatives seem to have difficulty embracing the global best practices and SARS in particular is in a class of its own, taking the wind out of the sail of rebranding efforts by its atrocious actions virtually on a daily basis.

While it is rather unclear why the reform of SARS seems impossible, it is unequivocal that if practical steps are not taken to rein in the dastardly activities of this unit in the police force, it will continue to put the country on the global map for the wrong reasons.

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