Ethno-religious Struggle and Human Insecurity in the Fledging Nigerian Democracy Since 1999: The Political Nexus

Abstract

On religious and ethnic identity clashes lay the structure of the Nigerian state in 1914, which transmogrified into and characterises the struggle for control of power and distribution of national resources. The dominant religious identities consist of Christianity and Moslem, while dominant ethnic identities are Hausa/Fulani, Igbo, and Yoruba. These pristine forces are entangled in phobic struggle for control of power and the distribution of national resources particularly since 1999, which has led to different policy interventions in search of solution. These coincided with the emergence of different ethno-religious conflicts in Nigeria. Thus, this paper explores the character and manifestation of these conflicts since 1999. It seeks to find out if: ethno-religious struggles led to the emergence of major conflicts in Nigeria since 1999; their impact on human insecurity; and the influence of politics on the conflicts. This inquiry is designed in-line with One-shot case study, while literature survey and expost facto methods were adopted as methods of data gathering. Trend analysis is adopted for data analysis. Analysis reveals that ethno-religious struggles were the primary progenitor of conflicts in Nigeria since 1999; and has debilitating consequences while politics exacerbated ethno-religious conflicts. Upholding Nigeria’s circular state and implementing the National Political Reforms Conference Report are the panacea for ethno-religious conflict in Nigeria.