Benue State University, Makurdi

A Historical Foundation of Boko Haram Terrorism in Northeast Nigeria

John Tor TSUWA and Benjamin Terzungwe TOUGH

Abstract

The study attempts to trace a historical foundation of Boko Haram terrorism in Nigeria’s Northeast region. The researcher relied on existing secondary data to trace the history of how successive administrations had tolerated the activities of pro-Islamist groups such as Maitasine, the institution of sharia legal code and its adoption as state religion in twelve states in Nigeria and how this has eventually laid the foundation for Boko Haram. This has been captured within the theoretical underpinnings of clash of civilizations theory as propounded by Samuel Huntington. Using Huntington’s theoretical postulation: one which assumes among other things that Islamic and Western civilizations are in constant clash with one another, the researcher traced how Islamic religion has not only been used to manipulate the Nigerian political system or as a means to ascendancy into political offices but recently also as a justification for engagement into terrorism. This claim is justified by Boko Haram’s opposed position to Western education in Nigeria. The study therefore concludes that the tolerance of the successive administrations in Nigeria over the foregoing gave impetus to Islamists to adopt terrorist means to dismantle Western education and install sharia law. The researchers therefore recommend among other things for stakeholders to commit resources into re-orienting disoriented Islamists who engage in Boko Haram terrorism and to renew the political will towards tracking and stopping terrorist funding in Nigeria.

DOWNLOAD COMPLETE ARTICLE HERE (CLICK)