Demonstrators clog Lagos during anti-SARS protests

More than 10,000 protestors flooded the Nigerian capital demanding actions against police brutality in the country.

The economic hub of Nigeria, Lagos came down to a standstill when protestors brandished the green-and-white Nigerian flag, gathering around a major stretch of highway.

The protests, based on objections submitted by youth in the online community against the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) was joined by international celebrities including American rapper Kayne West. The incidents of harassment kidnapping And extortion by the SARS led to a nationwide outcry.

Anger over abuses by the police’s notorious Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) erupted into widespread demonstrations last week, forcing the government to scrap the unit.

Despite the announcement of string of reforms from the rattled authorities, crowds are still pouring in causing chaos. This wave, the biggest in Africa through the past decade has seen one of the most populous countries in the continent call for a radical change.

A mammoth crowd, on Friday gathered at a toll gate that has become the epicentre of the protests in Lagos to hold a vigil for those killed by police. They held their mobile phone torches aloft as they called for accountability after decades of widespread mistreatment by law enforcement.

The Nigerian authorities have already set up a a new SWAT unit to replace SARS and pledged to hold officers who have committed abuses accountable.

But many are skeptical that the government will follow through with the genuine change after a rights group said that up to 10 people were killed in the initial harsh response to the protests.