Understanding Insurgency in Nigeria: Interrogating Religious Categories of Analysis

Abstract

In analyzing the motivations behind the formation of insurgent groups and their activities against the state, academic debates have been sharply divided. On the one hand are scholars who emphasize insurgency as fallout of religious activities, while on the other hand are those who prioritize geostrategic politics or political marginalization as the root cause. Either claim, however, is only valid in part and obscures a holistic understanding of insurgency as a political phenomenon. Using Boko Haram as a case study, this article interrogates literatures on the aforementioned perspectives and highlights the empirical inadequacies in emphasizing one perspective at the expense of the other. This study suggests that only a synergized and balanced consideration of both perspectives can broaden the understanding of the motivations behind the emergence of Boko Haram as one of the world’s deadliest insurgent groups.

Women’s Political Participation and its Predictors in Northern and Southern Nigeria

“…In this respect, we found Christian religious affiliation to be strongly, significantly associated with claim-making only for northern women. The religionised nature of Nigerian politics sheds some light on why a Christian religious affiliation is a significant predictor of making claims on government in the predominantly Muslim Northern Nigeria (Aghedo and Surulola 2013;Bamidele 2018). Northern Christians often feel marginalised because most prominent political office holders in the region are Muslim.…”

“…Religionised politics and politicised religion therefore provide the context for a conflictual relationship in Nigeria. Suspicions and allegations of attempts to Islamise Nigeria climaxed in the emergence of the Boko Haram extremist militant group in 2002(Aghedo and Surulola 2013;Bamidele 2018). How the tensions between Christians and Muslims on political issues affects women's political participation remains largely unexplored.Nigeria has a long history of gender-based violence taking place before, during and after elections, and there are a number of studies that identify the nexus between electoral violence and women's participation in these processes(Agbalajobi and Agunbiade 2016;Luka 2011;Orji and Uzodi 2012).…”