Just in: Northern Governors say Yes to SARS

The North-South dicotomy in Nigeria played out on Thursday as Northern states have rejected the total disbandment of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), saying the police unit has been useful in the fight against insecurity in the region.

The Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum and Plateau Governor, Mr Simon Lalong, made their position known while fielding questions from State House correspondents after a meeting with  President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja on Thursday.

According to him, that even though President Buhari has already approved the scrapping of SARS, the northern states do not believe that “the baby should be thrown away with the bath water.”

“SARS was not made up of bad elements alone as it also included personnel who were doing their work diligently.

“What is needed is the reformation of the unit to enable it to discharge its functions optimally,” Lalong said.

The, however, acknowledged that there are divisions in the country concerning the continued existence of SARS.

Lalong said he was in the Presidential Villa to commend Buhari for approving community policing of which training has commenced in earnest in the various zones of the country.