CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study
Nigeria is facing myriad of challenges which are affecting the socio-economic development of the country. One of such problems bedeviling the socio-economic development of the country is the issue of kidnapping and hostage taking (Kyrian, 2019). Kidnapping and hostage taking in Nigeria has turned into a social problem which is affecting virtually every member of the Nigerian society in one way or the other.
Kidnapping and hostage taking in Nigeria are currently social problems which are affecting Nigerians and slowly becoming a major challenge to national security. The security situation in Nigeria has degenerated to an epidemic proportion and this is a fact known by everybody. Nobody seems safe any longer. Kidnapping and hostage taking has lead to a disturbing threat of peace and stability in Nigeria (Adetuba, 2016).
Every nation is concerned with security which is simply defined by Imobighe as the freedom from or the absence of those tendencies which could undermine internal cohesion and the corporate existence of the nation and its ability to maintain its vital institutions for the promotion of its core values and sociopolitical and economic objectives of the people (Soyombo, 2019).
In addition, Demola (2019) defined internal security as the freedom from danger to life and property and the presence of a conducive atmosphere for the people to pursue their legitimate interest within the society. Banditry and Boko Haram insurgency poses the greatest security threat to the national security, since the end of the civil war in 1970. The Niger delta militancy which was said to have started because the minority ethnic groups felt they were being exploited. This violence has continued over the years and has contributed to Nigeria’s ongoing energy supply crisis by discouraging foreign investment in the new power generation plants (Demola, 2019).
Kidnapping can be described as the act of forcefully seizure or abduction of someone against his own wish and rather illegally. kidnapping and hostage taking are said to have similar meaning because they involve the forceful seizure of individuals out of their comfort zone, without permission from such individuals including the fact that certain requirements and conditions are made that must be met before an individual is released (Uzorma & Nwanegbo, 2014).
In other circumstances, after conditions are met, the victims are killed. These individuals go through traumatic experiences which are never forgotten in their life time. Kidnapping can be said to have entered the lexicon of the crime rate of the country around 2003. This menace became widespread and serious in 2005. Most importantly it is also imperative to note that there are different motives for kidnapping and hostage taking but sometimes it is usually difficult to find a single motive (Soyombo, 2019). Motives can be either material motive which will definitely involve the use of ransom other times; other times, the motive might be in order to fulfill a particular condition or more likely a political stunt pulled by a fellow political aspirant.
Kidnapping and hostage taking can be said to be criminal offences and as such should be treated as one in the court of law. As peculiar crimes, hostage-taking and kidnapping are deviant behaviours that are unique in intended teleology, synaptic of analogous crimes, universal in specific areas of ravage, prevalent with relative intensity which spate of ravage may be spasmodic or regular, and creating tensed zeitgeist. Hostage-taking and kidnapping are cognate crimes that have culture and metamorphoses (Efiezormor, 2017). This crime culture’s metamorphosis is determined by the type of social and value-systems operational in the society and these societal value systems and mechanism typify and localize the crime circumstances and events. Thus, peculiarity of crimes has implications on a locality, the prevailing socio-economic activities in it, the topography of the area (that the criminals themselves spend time to survey and study during crime-incubation in order to master and dominion over it), the pedigree and structure of insecurity and safety-consciousness of the area, as well as human readiness to onslaught and blitz miscreants in their mist (Adetuba, 2016).
The national security issue of every country emphasizes on how to secure its territorial integrity and the civilian population within its boarders. It is disappointing to state that even the police whose main goal is to safeguard the security of individuals in Nigeria are doing a poor job on it because they are often unprepared for the task and apart from their inadequacies there are also worrying signs that their loyalty is suspected because some whistle blowers have come to grief for confiding in the police (Kyrian, 2019).
The rate at which insecurity has spread all over the country has become a major concern for all citizens of Nigeria and non citizens because churches, mosques, market, schools, homes and the high way are easily accessible for this crime which has led to foreign investors within Nigeria to be scared away and even staffs of these companies relocate their families outside the Nigeria (Adetuba, 2016).
Kidnapping and hostage taking poses major threats to the national security causing citizens in Nigeria to be scared for their lives and they no longer feel welcomed in Nigeria. National security as defined as the security of a country, its citizens, partners and allies, a strong innovative and growing economy and an open international system that promotes opportunity and prosperity.
Kidnapping and hostage taking are acts of terrorism and criminal act and also a breach to fundamental human rights of innocent victims. There are several reasons why people engage in the act of kidnapping. Some of the causes include; ethnic conflict, religious conflict, criminal intentions, poverty, unemployment, pervasive corruption, global economic meltdown etc. Kidnapping and hostage taking constitute a serious threat to security agencies and national security. This work is therefore spurred by the rate of problems accumulating from kidnapping and hostage taking because everyone is greatly affected by this dangerous criminal attack in Nigeria.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
The primary function of government is to secure lives and properties in the state, when this is not attainable, insecurity becomes the order of the day. Some of the evidence of insecurity in the Nigeria state is kidnapping and hostage taking.
In spite these efforts by the government, the crime persists. Kidnapping groups are often beyond the reach of the law enforcement agencies. This is evident in the time taken in conducting their violent bargains by requesting a second payment after reaching agreement and the release of a victim. On other occasions, kidnappers have portrayed inefficiency (whether deliberate or not) with regards to their “data base”, as they have abducted some persons over and over again. The government with little or no political will and a deteriorating moral authority has made several attempts utilising force in its approach to kidnapping diplomacy.
The former President of Nigeria Goodluck Ebele Jonathan commented on kidnapping in the light of its challenges to national security, he said that this security challenge crawled in gradually as if it would not be too harmful and this caused the government not to take attack but now it has become a cancer that needs surgical operation to cure. This statement by the former president means that kidnapping and hostage taking initially was not seen as a threat to national security but as a fair outrage by certain individuals to ascertain their rights but today it is a major challenge to citizens and it has become a serious threat that needs special measures to manage. Kidnapping and hostage taking poses serious threat to the stability of the socio political and economic life of Nigerians and as such creates strong challenges to national security. Kidnapping and hostage taking have been seen as; a product of extreme poverty caused by unemployment; alienation of certain section of the society from the social surplus controlled by the ruling class. However, the current research intends to critically examine the implications of kidnapping and hostage as a challenge to national security.
1.3 Objectives of the Study
The general objective of this research is to examine the implications of kidnapping and hostage as a challenge to national security.
The specific objectives are to:
- examine the nature of insecurity relating to kidnapping and hostage taking in North East Nigeria.
- examine the root causes of kidnapping and hostage taking in North East Nigeria.
- determine the impact of kidnapping and hostage taking on national security in North East Nigeria.
- find out the efforts made by the government on kidnapping and hostage taking and its impact on national security in North East Nigeria.
1.4 Research Questions
- What is the nature of insecurity relating to kidnapping and hostage taking in North East Nigeria?
- What are the root causes of kidnapping and hostage taking in North East Nigeria?
- How does kidnapping and hostage taking impact on national security in North East Nigeria?
- What are the efforts made by the government on kidnapping and hostage taking and its impact on national security in North East Nigeria?
1.5 Significance of the Study
The results of this study will be useful for policy formulation by the government as it provides explanation of the implications of kidnapping and hostage taking on the challenges of national security in North East Nigeria. It will also educate the masses on the subject matter. It will also form as guide for the security agencies, stakeholders to review their strategies and proffer a lasting solution to the menace of kidnapping and hostage taking. This research will be a contribution to the body of literature in the area of the kidnapping and hostage taking, its implications and the challenges for national security, thereby constituting the empirical literature for future research in the subject area.
1.6 Scope of the Study
This study will cover the implications of kidnapping and hostage taking on the challenges of national security. It will also cover the root causes, government efforts and its impact on national security. The study will cover the North East Nigeria because that is the region where kidnapping and hostage taking is more rampant. It will cover issues spanning 2015 and 2021. This period is chosen because a lot of kidnapping and hostage taking activities took place within the period.
1.7 Methodology
Methodology is part of the research that shows the ways and approaches of collecting the data (Oliver, 2004). This research is primarily qualitative as it is based on the implications of kidnapping and hostage taking on the challenges of national security in North-East, Nigeria. The reason for choosing the qualitative analysis strategy is the qualitative nature of study. According to Robson (1993), flexibility is always the main strength of the case study strategy in terms of interpretation and getting access to the specified places. The research is a based on primary and secondary data. Primary data will be obtained using interview. We used document analysis/content analysis as main method of secondary data collection. Document analysis/content analysis also called “textual analysis” (Travers, 2001) in the study will include all kinds of academic articles, textual and multi-media products, ranging from television programmes to web sites on the internet
1.8 Operational Definition of Terms
Kidnapping: Kidnapping is the taking away of a person by force, threat or deceit, with intent to cause him to be detained against his will. It may be done for ransom or for political purposes.
Hostage-taking: the act of seizing or holding a person as security for the fulfilment of a condition.
National security: the safety of a nation against threats such as terrorism, war, or espionage.
