The Military Dimension of Niger Delta Crisis and Its Implications on Nigeria National Security

Opeoluwa Adisa Oluyemi

doi:10.1177/2158244020922895

Abstract

This article uses qualitative research method to obtain information from high-profiled respondents through verbal interaction in semi-structured interviews in addition to some secondary data to examine the military dimension of Niger Delta crisis and its implications on security sectors in Nigeria. The Nigerian militarized political system attests to the influence of long-term military rule in the country thereby the perpetual deployment of Nigerian armed forces to complement the duty of police in ensuring internal security has been found unassailable within Nigerian democratic governments. Consequently, there have been numerous cases of civilian casualties characterizing the historical record of these military interventions in which the case of Niger delta crisis has been no exception. This article finds it worthwhile to examine the outcomes of these military operations in Niger delta crisis over security sectors in Nigeria and finds them to be terrifically counterproductive. The result unveils the impracticality of military armed forces becoming instrumental in addressing economic and environmental insecurities of a state as well as the need to expand the agenda of security beyond the military armed forces. Theoretically, this article uses the Copenhagen School of Security Studies’ (CS) conceptualization of security sectors as conceptual and structural framework of the study.

Highlights

Militarism in African context is defined according to Luckham (1994) as the pervasiveness of prioritizing military symbolic values and validating of military power in the society for the sake of making preparation for war
The region has recorded many military operations in physical combats with militants that are disrupting the activities of oil but the questions to ask include the following: What are the outcomes of these operations? Has militants’ attacks reduced in the Niger Delta due to the presence of Nigerian soldiers? What are the implications of the military dimension of this crisis over the Nigeria national security? This article aims to provide answers to these questions with the use of both primary and secondary sources of data collection
Considering the various human rights casualties recorded during the military operations, the devastating implications of military dimension of the crisis on Nigeria security sectors as well as the violent response of militants in retaliating military operations, it is suggestible to Nigerian policy makers to adopt wideners’ security approach as illustrated by Barry Buzan

Summary

Introduction

Militarism in African context is defined according to Luckham (1994) as the pervasiveness of prioritizing military symbolic values and validating of military power in the society for the sake of making preparation for war. The author expanded the concept of militarism to be a multidimensional process whereby different elements ranging from military coups and regimes, authoritarian government, war and armed conflict, the prevalence of patriarchal system, importation of ammunitions, external military interventions, war and armed conflicts, powerful military, and repressive state apparatuses are inter-connected with each other for the projects of national and international hegemony. He argues that several years of military involvements in the contemporary style of African politics have militarized its civil rule.

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