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Effects Of Ethnic Nationalism On Internal Security In The Niger Delta Region (1999-2014)
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CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
The
concept ethnic is derived from the Greek word “ethnos†meaning tribe or
race. Niger Delta is blessed with numerous ethnic groups in Nigeria,
which has also contributed to the sustainability of Nigeria state. The
definition of the Niger Delta has elicited different views. The World
Bank (1993) described it as one of the words larges wetlands and
Africa’s largest delta covering some 70,000km, formed by the
accumulation of sedimentary deposits transported by the Niger and Benue
Rivers. A publication of the defunct Oil Minerals Producing Area
Development Commission (OMPADEC) reads that:
The River Niger
disgorges its waters into the Atlantic Ocean through a large number of
tributaries which form the Niger Delta. The area of the Delta is further
enlarged by rivers other than tributaries of the Niger……….Calabar
River, Cross River and Imo River to the East, and Siluko River, Benin
River, Escravoss River and River Forcados, to the west (OMPADEC, 1993:
80).
In the view of the OMPADEC, the River Niger, its tributaries and
other rives which have enlarged the area of the Niger Delta; define the
scope of the area. Following this, it posits that the Niger Delta is
made up of at least seven states which are Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Akwa-
Ibom, Cross-River, Ondo and Edo states. In like manner, the Willink
Commission Report (1958) locates the Niger Delta within the Ibo Plateau
and the Cross River valley. The Report describes it thus:
To the east of Ibo Plateau lies the valley of Cross River, which is fed by streams from the Cameroons as well as form the Plateau. This forms a broad vertical strip containing people who are not Ibos. Across the south of the region from the Niger in the West to the mountains in the East, stretches a broad horizontal best of swamps and low-lying country. These two strips of
the coastal belt and the Cross River valley together make together a
piece of country, the shape of a rather sprawling reversal ‘L’ which
encloses the Ibo Plateau. In the swamp and Greek country of the south
west there is an area in which the predominant tribe group is that of
the Ijaws ……..towards the mouth of the Cross River are the Efiks ……… and
the Ibibio’s …….. Further north on the Cross River are
many tribes inter mingled in a confusing multitude (Willink Commission Report 1958:34).
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]Ethnic nationalism is a common phenomenon in Niger Delta, Nigeria. Ethnic nationalism in Niger Delta has been agitating for so long for self-determination and to control their God giving resources, in their quest to achieve their aims, their actions sometimes has generated a lot of tension to Niger Delta region. The study examined ethnic nationalism and internal security in Niger Delta region, Nigeria. The study examined the research questions. Has ethnic nationalism affect the internal security ... Continue reading---
