Insecurity in Nigeria
INSECURITY IN NIGERIA
Underlying the quest for national security in Nigeria is the issue of political morality, which focuses on the question of defining the relationship between the state and the various groups in the society. Political morality properly construed seeks to establish and sustain the essential conditions for the smooth functioning of the state and society. It is in this light that we identify the problem of the moral basis of Nigeria’s security to be a vital imperative of national reconciliation, national survival and national development in the new millennium. Our examination of the moral foundations of national security is all the more significant when we examine the trend of events in the history of military and economic growth in Nigeria, especially under the erstwhile military regimes of Abacha and Babangida.
This essay is particularly concerned with showing the pattern of ethical degeneration that led to the systematic and institutionalised erosion of personal and collective peace, safety, stability and harmony within the Nigerian society. Also, the need for an examination of the ethical basis of human social existence in Nigeria is further highlighted by president Obasanjo (1999: 8) who 245National Security, Social Order… in the October 1999 national day speech emphasized that there is a need to examine the moral foundations of all our actions and to continue to search for the conditions that will make Nigeria a just, free and wealthy society. Obasanjo’sstatement clearly implies that the country is yet to achieve the much desired level of ethical conduct and respect for human dignity that can ensure the maintenance of security, peace and order in the society.
Indeed, the history of Nigeria shows that the practice of genuine moral conduct and the guarantee of adequate personal and national security for all segments of the society has been an illusive and futile project. An examination of the spectrum of national life
Underlying the quest for national security in Nigeria is the issue of political morality, which focuses on the question of defining the relationship between the state and the various groups in the society. Political morality properly construed seeks to establish and sustain the essential conditions for the smooth functioning of the state and society. It is in this light that we identify the problem of the moral basis of Nigeria’s security to be a vital imperative of national reconciliation, national survival and national development in the new millennium. Our examination of the moral foundations of national security is all the more significant when we examine the trend of events in the history of military and economic growth in Nigeria, especially under the erstwhile military regimes of Abacha and Babangida.
This essay is particularly concerned with showing the pattern of ethical degeneration that led to the systematic and institutionalised erosion of personal and collective peace, safety, stability and harmony within the Nigerian society. Also, the need for an examination of the ethical basis of human social existence in Nigeria is further highlighted by president Obasanjo (1999: 8) who 245National Security, Social Order… in the October 1999 national day speech emphasized that there is a need to examine the moral foundations of all our actions and to continue to search for the conditions that will make Nigeria a just, free and wealthy society. Obasanjo’sstatement clearly implies that the country is yet to achieve the much desired level of ethical conduct and respect for human dignity that can ensure the maintenance of security, peace and order in the society.
Indeed, the history of Nigeria shows that the practice of genuine moral conduct and the guarantee of adequate personal and national security for all segments of the society has been an illusive and futile project. An examination of the spectrum of national life