INSECURITY IN NIGERIA AND THE MORALITY OF ETHNO-RELIGIOUS MUTUAL MISTRUST

Abstract

Man lives in a very sophisticated environment. He is faced with the challenges of securing himself in a precarious world as a ‘being to himself’ and as a ‘being with others’. He is not only confronted with the dangers posed by his fellow human beings but with the dangers of natural disasters and some technological advancement. This fear arises from within and from without. There are stories of mass shooting, suicide bomb attacks and knife mass attacks that affect even children in the world as seen over the media. The security of human basic needs like food, healthcare, shelter and clothing are not insulated from this hydra monster called insecurity. The Nigerian nation is not left out in this quagmire of insecurity. The security in Nigeria is peculiar owing to her prejudiced multiethnic and multi-religious setting. The ethnic and religious coalition in Nigeria which should have been an enormous advantage has caused more harm than good especially in the area of national security. Appointments to the heads of all the security apparatus are given to a particular ‘born to rule’ ethnic group and religion thereby breeding mistrust and resentment among the aggrieved ethnic groups and religions. This paper analytically x-rayed the cancerous nature of insecurity in Nigeria due to mutual mistrust among political game players in the field of national security. The paper recommended state policing, value reorientation, constitutional amendments and restructuring to accommodate the rotation of appointments of security chiefs from one ethnic