Under Threat of Domestic Terrorism: Addressing and Overcoming the Boko Haram ‘Jama’atu Ahlus- Sunnah Lidda’Awati Wal Jihad’ in the North-Eastern Region of Nigeria

Abstract

If stability is crucial for development, and democracy could facilitate national stability, then the fortunes of the over 170 million people in Nigeria should have turned for the better since the rebirth of democracy in 1999. This has not been the case, though, suggesting that democracy per se does not guarantee stability – democratic Nigeria has been facing a host of challenges standing in the way of its socio-cultural, economic and political development. The elections in Nigeria furthermore marked the beginning of domestic terrorism, the effects of which cannot be underemphasised, as is evident from the destruction wrought by the  Islamic terrorist group operation in the north-eastern region of Nigeria. The country’s attempts to stabilise the political system through improved internal security operations and cooperation among various groups of interest outside the state can be seen as a response mainly to the upsurge of this catastrophic terrorism. This paper attempts to analyse the causes of Nigeria’s terrorism, review various counter-terrorism strategies and discuss a few measures for managing domestic terrorism in Nigeria.

Keywords: causes, domestic terrorism, Nigeria, north-eastern region, preventive measures