Nigeria Security Challenges are a Bane to Development

Question: Nigeria security challenges are a bane to development.

Introduction:

The widespread absence of human security in Nigeria demonstrates the fact that human security is the first and foremost requisite for development. Moreover it is concerned with the issues related to the quality of life. The goals of ''freedom from fear'' and ''freedom from want'' may well be attained only through the protection of empowerment framework of human security that promotes the highest freedom of how to live in dignity. It promotes a people oriented, integrated and comprehensive framework. Human security in Nigeria is often threatened by unjust political, social and economic structures. The fragmentation process of social groups, economic systems and political structures threatens human security at every step. Conflicts and civil unrest has made Nigeria insecure throughout the last five decades after independence in 1960 ( Philip, 2001). The security of people is endangered by poverty, hunger, unemployment, health hazards, discrimination and ecological degradation, therefore thwarting development. These sources of insecurity need to be addressed in a holistic manner so as to pave way for development. It is essential to focus on human security in order to focus on broader developmental agendas. It is clear that piecemeal policy and measures will not be sufficient and a fully comprehensive development strategy is required.

It is already noted that human security and human development are connected. They are closely linked like the Siamese twins. Without human security, it is impossible to initiate human development and without human development human security cannot be attained. In the present context, both the terms human security and human development have almost become synonymous. Human security and human development are not distinct and to attain one is to attain the other too. Development is the process, Human security is the condition. Human security is conducive to human development and both are mutually inclusive. The relationship that exists between the two is the cause and effect relationship. Human security is the cause that exists at the fundamental level. Human development is the effect of human security. Human security is the foundation base. The buildup of the action plan of total development will rest on the foundations of security. The implications of human security will bear positive outcomes if the human security indicators are in place. The present Nigerian scenario shows that the human security indicators bring out the insufficient and ineffective status and this threat to security has its negative implications on the prospects of growth and development (Philip, 2001).

Manifestations of Insecurity in Nigeria

The under listed are the various manifestations of conflict and insecurity in Nigeria:

Ethno-religious Conflict

Communal and societal conflicts according to Ibrahim and Igbuzor (2002) have emerged as a result of new and particularistic forms of political consciousness and identity often structured around ethno-religious identities. In all parts of Nigeria, ethno-religious conflicts have assumed alarming rates. It has occurred in places like Shagamu (Ogun State), Lagos, Abia, Kano, Bauchi, Nassarawa, Jos, Taraba, Ebonyi and Enugu State respectively.

Groups and communities who had over the years lived together in peace and harmony now take up arms against each other in gruesome "war". The claim over scarce resources, power, land, chieftaincy, local government, councils, control of markets, "Osu caste system" and sharia among other trivial issues have resulted in large scale killings and violence amongst groups in Nigeria. In these conflicts, new logics of social separation and dichotomy have evolved in many communities in Nigeria. According to Eme and Anthony (2011), asserts that, there is the classification of the "settler" and "indigene", "Christian" and "Moslem", and "osu" (slave) and "Nwadiala" (free born). These ethno-religious identities have become disintegrative and destructive social elements threatening the peace, stability and security in Nigeria.

 

 

Politically Based Violence

Politics in the current civil dispensation like the previous Republics have displayed politics of anxiety which has played down on dialogue, negotiation and consensus. The anxiety is as a result of perceived or real loss of power by an elite stratum. Put different the quest for political power is among those elites that won it before, those that lost it and those who want it back. Currently, politicians are already strategizing about the control and retention of power come 2011 elections. To this end, inter and intra-political party conflicts have become rife in which politicians are deploying large resources to out-do each other, changing the rules and legislations of the political game, distorting laws and employing violence and political assassination to settle political scores. Party meeting, campaigns and conventions have become war threats where small and light weapons like guns and cutlasses are freely displayed and used to rig elections, harass and intimidate electors. Also, a spate of politically motivated killing is rife. The most shocking of this killing is rife. The most shocking of these killings was the murder of Chief Bola Ige, Funsho Williams, Dikibo, Ogbonna Uche, and Marshall, among others Onyemaizu (2006:10) adds: A resort to violence, including armed militancy, assassination, kidnap, et cetera, have somewhat suddenly become attractive to certain individuals in seeking to resolve issues that could have ordinarily been settled through due process. The end-products of such misadventures have often

been catastrophic. They include the decimation of innocent lives, disruption of economic activities, and destruction of properties among others.

The predilection of most of the politicians is not for election but selection. This lack of party internal democracy is already being revealed in the party primaries, and "selection" of national executive officers of the parties. Even politicians themselves are afraid of what the forthcoming general elections between 2010 and 2011 portend. An atmosphere of political insecurity is fast engulfing Nigeria's nascent Fourth Republic (Eme and Anthony, 2011).

Economic-Based Violence

In a popular parlance, this thesis is also known as "political economy of violence". Recent writings in the mass media across the globe and across political divide have laid much emphasis on the role of resources in generating conflict which is a major cornerstone of economic-based violence. Cries of resource control and revenue sharing regularly rent the air between proponents and opponents. Although by no means limited to oil in the Niger Delta, the most prevalent campaign about the link between resources and conflict focuses on oil and the Delta region. Put differently, there is evidence to suggest that oil has given rise to vertical and horizontal conflicts between National, State and society or between dominant and subordinate geopolitical zones, classes and groups across Nigeria, given the pivotal role that oil plays in the restructuring power relations in Nigeria (Eme and Anthony, 2011). It is however true that other types of resource driven conflicts have received less attention in the debate. Assets such as grazing and farming and water resource, have tended to give rise to horizontal conflicts that involve communities across the geo-political zones.

The other thesis is that conflict in Nigeria is poverty induced. This explanation is closely related to relative deprivation, rather than absolute poverty. As a result of the above, the inability of the state to provide basic services for the populace, generate new conflict or renew old ones manifested through politicized agents who have used the conditions of the poor to address, the responses or non-responses of the state to the legitimate yearnings of the people.

Organized Violent Groups

Organized violent groups take varying dimension and forms. These include: ethnic militia, vigilantes, secret cults in tertiary institutions and political thugs. Various reasons and circumstances account for their emergence. The causes of the manifestations include the culture of militarism that has its antecedents in military rule, the failure of the state and its institutions, economic disempowerment, the structure of the state and Nigeria's federalism, non-separation of state and religion, politics of exclusion, culture of patriarchy and gerontocracy and ignorance and poor political consciousness (Ibrahim and Igbuzor, 2002:7).

Impact of Insecurity in Nigeria

The under listed are a checklist of the impact of conflicts and insecurity in a polity:

1. Social dislocation and population displacement.

2. Social tensions and new pattern of settlements which encourages Muslins/Christians or members of an ethnic group moving to Muslim/Christian dominated enclaves.

3. Heightens citizenship question and encourages hostility between "indigenes" and "settlers".

4. Dislocation and disruption of family and communal life.

5. General atmosphere of mistrust, fear, anxiety and frenzy

6. Dehumanization of women, children, and men especially in areas where rape, child abuse and neglect are used as instruments of war.

7. Deepening of hunger and poverty in the polity

8. Atmosphere of political insecurity and instability including declining confidence in the political leadership and apprehension about the system (Ibrahim and Igbuzor, 2002:13).

9. Governance deficit as a result of security agencies inefficiency and corruption.

    The above listed are the impact of insecurity on development as the discourage unity among the people and rather creating fear and tension in their daily lives.

Insecurity Challenges

Traditional rulers, vigilance groups and politicians are perpetrating heinous crimes in Nigeria. The Anambra Vigilante Service aka Bakassi Boys, for instance, has been blamed for some of the killings, although there is no evidence against them. But the theory that Bakassi and indeed the government in Anambra, may be involved in the killings evolved in the 2000.

Ifeanyi, Ibegbu then an All Peoples Party Leader in the State House of Assembly was abducted and tortured. Thus action seemed to open the gate for political assassination in the state which treated the peace of many and also lead to a slow down on the pace of development in Anambra . Edward Okeke, was next on the list. He was killed by people bearing a strong resemblance of Bakassi Boys in November 9, 2000 which meant that the people were not secured. Others that followed include: Ikechukwu Nwagbo, Rockefeller Okeke, Sunday Uzokwe, Barrister and Mrs. Barnabas Igwe. It was the killing of the Igwes that led to a federal government clampdown on the Bakassi Boys.

Godspower Agofure adds and believes that the insecurity of the nation is caused by politicians. According to him, life has been insecure in the country for quite some time and the politicians are directly responsible for it. He adds. They bought the weapons and armed the boys to help them secure electoral victory. And when they have used them to get where they are going, they dumped them. When they no longer have access to them and the boys no longer measure up to the life they were living when they were getting money from the politicians, they start to threaten innocent people which marked the emergence of youth's involvement in crime in the fourth republic.

What should have been the solution to the insecurity seems not be working: the introduction of vigilance groups in the states to be supervised by security personnel. The groups can comb their environment effectively. But unfortunately, these groups turn out in most cases to be more hardened criminals. Another major challenge is the urbanization process. This is because there is a strong and huge connection between security, environment and urbanization. General Secretary of

friend of Environment, Mr. Choke Chikwendu explains:

Our society has witnessed considerable urbanization but without commiserate security strength. We need to improve the security situation through a holistic approach. First, we need to provide jobs because when people are unemployed, they still survive somehow, devising dubious means and involving selves in nefarious activities like armed robbery, pick pocketing, car snatching among others; Secondly, the need to make our school system functional. Anyone that has spent four years in a school should be able to do something to help him/herself. Also, you will observe that the policemen are currently not doing much. They set up static checkpoints that even common thieves can elude. They need to be mobile so that they can rapidly respond to distress calls (Aliu, et al, 2010:23).

While I join concerned Nigerians to call for an overhaul of the country's security agencies, it is significant to stress that merely overhauling the police and other security agencies or equipping them cannot guarantee the security of lives and property of socio-economic insecurity is allowed to loom large, forcing many to seek existence even through fraudulent and violent means that endangers the wellbeing of others.

Related to the above is the challenge posed by poverty level in Nigeria. Governments at all levels are unable to address this because there is no realistic social security programme in Nigeria to meet the people's basic needs. As a result, the fear for the future and that of their children often provides the basis for the desperation exhibited in the pursuit of ill-gotten wealth.

Furthermore, the military has been under severe pressure from the opposition parties and the Civil Society to overthrow the government of Yar'Adua just like they did unlike former Obasanjo, which they feel is not accommodating the feelings, yearnings and all the interest of the stakeholders. Issues of electoral reforms, insecurity, high cost of living, unemployment, and infrastructural decay are part of the areas they feel the government has not been able to address.

Exactly ten years after the return of Nigeria to Civil rule, most Nigerians, especially the pro-democracy groups are disillusioned over the prospects of democracy, which they have fought and laboured to enthrone.

According to Chief Supo Shonibare, an Afenifere Chieftain, rather than peace, stability and unity, the last five years have only bred poverty, joblessness, political strife, insecurity and economic woes. The conclusion he said is that the country has gone back to exactly where it was six years ago (Thamas, 2004:10).

However, that has necessitated the regrouping of the pro-democracy activists, which are ready to battle this government to a standstill. Though the associations differ from Arewa Consultative Forum, Citizen Forum, Committee of Nigerian Political Parties and Coalition of Democrats for Electoral Reform (CODER), among others, the time around tends to be the same – convene a sovereign national conference or quit. This is an option which the presidency has vowed not to yield to. Electoral fraud poses a challenge to democracy in Nigeria and by implication threatens the security fabrics of the polity and thwarts development rather than paving way for development. Sham elections desecrate the sanctity of democracy and weaken its capacity as an instrument for social mobilization of natural and human resources for the development of the polity. In an environment where development of the populace is security and security is development, the consequences of such acts catch up very quickly with the system. Electoral fraud undermines the credibility and integrity of the democratic process and makes governance much more difficult. Concerned citizens, ladened with anger and frustration can resort to violence. Thus, Nigeria has eroded her democracy and the mind of the people cannot be considered during elections.

The poor management of the national economy cannot be excluded as far as insecurity of lives and property of Nigerians is concerned. Our avaricious leaders have virtually converted our national coffers into private establishments. Former governors and sacked bank executives are living examples. Nigeria is rich in black gold but suffers scarcity (Eme and Anthony, 2011).

But the criminals are not the only ones causing havoc to Nigerians. The state of the country's roads, especially the highways, where portholes have remained a common feature, is adding to the ever increasing insecurity across the land. About a month ago, the nation woke up to the horrible incident of road accident that claimed the lives of 42 pupils on excursion.

It was a moment of horror for the Aricent Nursery and Primary School Ore, in Odigbo Local Government Area of Ondo State, as its little souls met their death about 8.15 pm while returning from Idanre Hill tourist site when the crash occurred. As if to confirm the fears of Nigerians on the insecurity on the country's roads, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) source put a disturbing statistics out recently. It said that auto crashes claimed 128 lives in first three weeks in various highways (Madike, 2010:16). However, the oil-rich Niger Delta, which incubated some militants due to prolonged neglect, is also not helping matters. Though, there is a concerted effort by the authorities to address the issue, not much, according to opinions is expected because of unnecessary politics and government's bureaucratic bottlenecks.

With a long unbroken history of underperformance, the law enforcement and criminal justice systems in the polity are gradually receding from public reckoning as viable mechanism for social control. In helplessness, citizens have watched human lives brutally terminated and laws of the land violated without relevant institutions ever able to initiate the appropriate investigative and prosecutorial processes as to secure a conviction leads to underdevelopment as people are scared to invest or to develop the area (Eme and Anthony, 2011).

The fallouts, according to government critics, is the criminal-minded individuals now view the weakness in the said mechanisms as incentives for further anti-social behaviours that rob the society of public order and security significant for socio-economic and political stability and productive living.

The Boko Haram and Jos Crises added to the already ugly dimension of insecurity in Nigeria. The criminal activities of these crises left countless numbers of lives in ruins and destroyed property worth billions of naira and death roll running into hundreds of thousands which has led to massive relocation of victims and has left the affected areas undeveloped.

Insecurity Challenges: The Way Forward

The cost of insecurity is quite high both for individual Nigerians as well as the nation. For the former, it stunts personal development and interfere with his or her ability to develop his or her full potentials. The mind and energy of the average Nigerian is consumed with issues of safety and security that he or she has little energy left to contribute to Nigerian's development. The message should be clear to our government. Nigerians need a polity that is stable, peaceful, and safe enough from criminal assaults, murder, chaos, tyranny and breakdown of authority so that the populace can face issues of development with vigor and courage. To attain such heights, the under listed recommendations are suggested:

Governments at all levels should ensure that rising poverty indices should be reversed and a realistic social security programme should be pursued and systematically implemented to ensure that the populace meet their basic needs. Though there is a statutory limitation to what state government can do in the area of security, the states have something to contribute. The constitution places security on the exclusive federal list. The police and the Armed forces are all federal institutions, not legally accountable to state governments. Secondly, as a complement to the services of the conventional security agencies, states should sponsor community-based vigilantes.

Local contractors should equally be used to execute government projects. The aim is to boost the local economy, create jobs and ultimately, social harmony.

People should be more security conscious, share information with the police and other security agencies. The populace should not leave security matters to security personnel only. All and sundry should be involved in security information and data gathering. Moreover, efforts should be put in crime prevention than control so as to mark a new phase or record of development in the country.

Furthermore, the government should increase the size of Nigeria's security agencies, empower and motivate them very well and strengthen neighborhood watch. Governments should equally fix social infrastructures – roads, street lights, schools and skill acquisition centers.

Apart from the above, there is no gain saying that lack of youth empowerment programmes contribute immensely to social insecurity in the polity. The government should create programmes that would empower our youths technically. This will enable them to be self-reliant and avert their minds from criminal tendencies.

Finally, the practice of the rule of law, constitutionalism, avoidance of undue retrenchment of workers, payment of salary and allowances as and when due and payment of compensation for property destroyed are other means by which the question of insecurity could be avoided.

Conclusion

Any environment inundated with crime and insecurity is always accompanied with tensions and anxiety. The elimination of these threats and enemies of man should be the number one programme of the governments in Nigeria. This will give rise to human development and a habitable environment for us all. Apart from the governments' own role, all hands should also be on deck to eliminate this monster of insecurity in Nigeria.

 

References

 

Akintunde, K. (2002), "Do or Die", The Week, November 4, pp. 14-19.

Aliu, A., et al, (2010), "Reign of Armed Gangs on the roads, homes, dims Nigeria's Security Bar", The Guardian, Friday, April 9, pp. 21-23.

Ibrahim, J. and Igbuzor, O. (2002) "Memorandum submitted to the Presidential Committee on National Security in Nigeria."

Madike, I. (2010)", Living on the Edge of Insecurity", Sunday Independent, April 11, pp. 15-17.

Onyemaizu, C. (2006) "In the Maze of Violence," The Source, September 4, Vol. 19, No. 22,pp. 10 – 21.

Philip Ogo Ujomu (2001), ''National Security, Social Order and the Quest for Human Dignity in Nigeria: Some Ethical Considerations'', Op.Cit, pp.254-258

Thomas, O. (2004), "Swim or Sink", The Week, June 21, Pp. 8-11.