عنوان

Assessment of Nigeria's Counter-Terrorism Strategies: A Comparative Analysis of Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari Administrations

Number

TL50597

.Language of Text, Soundtrack etc

انگلیسی

Title Proper

Assessment of Nigeria's Counter-Terrorism Strategies: A Comparative Analysis of Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari Administrations

General Material Designation

[Thesis]

First Statement of Responsibility

Nurudeen, Sikiru Lanre

Subsequent Statement of Responsibility

Mahmud, Sakah

Name of Publisher, Distributor, etc.

Kwara State University (Nigeria)

Date of Publication, Distribution, etc.

2019

Text of Note

387 p.

Dissertation or thesis details and type of degree

Ph.D.

Body granting the degree

Kwara State University (Nigeria)

Text preceding or following the note

2019

Text of Note

For close to a decade now in Nigeria, terrorism has emerged as the most daunting security challenge facing the country. The major problem in Nigeria today is the issue of terrorism, and despite the counter-strategies of the Jonathan and Buhari administrations, Nigeria has been unable to defeat Boko Haram. Against this background, this research undertakes an assessment of Nigeria's counter-terrorism strategies under the Jonathan and Buhari administrations. The objective of this research is to examine the efficacy of Nigeria's counter-terrorism strategies against Boko Haram under the Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari administrations, identify the weaknesses, and make recommendations on how Nigeria can effectively confront and defeat Boko Haram. The research is predicated on the systems, functionalist and realist theories because the three theories, taken together, are useful as a framework of analysis. Similarly, the functionalist theory is relevant to the study since an effective counter-terrorism strategy can only be built around the ideals of co-operation among states, which is a more effective mechanism of addressing the scourge of terrorism. The research also recognises the ultimate role of power as the primary instrument of safeguarding national security within the state-centric perspective and the realist theory. Yet, the research notes that the soft-power approach to counter-terrorism is a re-enforcement of the realist theory, and does not, in any way, conflict with it since states are at liberty to apply a combination of the tangible and intangible elements of power to address their national security concerns. Given the nature of this study, the research adopts In-Depth Interview (IDI) and Key Informant Interview (KII) methods to source for primary data. It also generates data through the secondary sources, and employs the qualitative approach and comparative method of analysis. A major finding of this research is that the war against Boko Haram is an unconventional war, and consequently, professionally trained soldiers are not traditionally equipped to engage in an asymmetric war, in which there is no battle line or rules of engagement. In making a comparison between the two administrations, the research notes that the Buhari administration has been able to record significant progress in its counter-terrorism strategies against Boko Haram, because it approached the war with a more integrated strategy, better funding of the military operations, and significant improvement in combat readiness of the Nigerian troops. In spite of this relative success, However, the research finds out that the declaration of 'technical defeat' of Boko Haram by the Buhari administration, far from suggesting that Boko Haram has been defeated, merely implies that the capacity of the terror group has been substantially degraded. To defeat Boko Haram, the research recommends that the Nigerian military should continually adjust its operational strategies to the requirements of an unconventional warfare, and concludes that a combination of hard and soft power is needed for Nigeria to execute an effective counter-terrorism strategy.

Subject Term

African Studies

Subject Term

Political science

Subject Term

Public administration

Nurudeen, Sikiru Lanre

Mahmud, Sakah

Kwara State University (Nigeria)

Electronic name

p

[Thesis]

276903

a

Y