Governing “Ungoverned Spaces” in the Foliage of Conspiracy: Toward (Re)ordering Terrorism, from Boko Haram Insurgency, Fulani Militancy to Banditry in Northern Nigeria

Abstract

This article explores the dominant narrative of ill-governed or ungoverned territories in the northern region of Nigeria where informality and socioeconomic deficit fashioned the mannerism of everyday life. Reconnoitering ungoverned territories, positing that radical jihadist and non-jihadist movements and criminal-armed groups are ideologically driven by localism and informal networks, particularly in the areas unkempt by the state. The paper interrogates to what extent ungoverned spaces embolden the recruitment of criminal and terrorist groups in northern Nigeria. It explains the complex security paradoxes confronting the Nigerian state, it analyses the Boko Haram insurgency, Fulani militancy and banditry within the context of ungoverned spaces that continuously breed terrorist organizations, and criminal networks, that pose an enormous risk to human security. It adopts a qualitative approach and spatial network analysis using Geographical Information System (GIS). The paper argues that the primordial negligence of ungoverned areas with limited state surveillance or unharmonized state presence, controlled by informal networks and hybrid arrangements creates an enabling environment for warlordism, religious fanaticism and tribal self-defense forces. It further demonstrates that governance failure in these regions stimulates illegal movement of arms and ammunition, the raw material for bombs, illegal drugs and foreign machines, and becomes abodes for Boko Haram jihadist and non-Boko Haram armed groups. The paper concludes that ungoverned spaces could be morphed into a production site for Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) by the terrorists in the near future, thus, until the Nigerian state pays attention to the territories under-governed or poorly governed, it will become difficult to win the war against terrorism, Fulani militancy and banditry through military response. Therefore, good governance that transcends ethnic chauvinism remains a veritable weapon in conquering multilayered security quagmires facing the giant of Africa.

The Politics of Eco-violence: Why Is Conflict Escalating in Nigeria’s Middle Belt?

“…Although the report agrees with the Cornucopians that there is no clear causal link between climate change and conflict, they assert an exacerbation of existing tensions and vulnerabilities through climate change interactions with political, social, and environmental factors. This report mirrors the arguments about the circumstances necessitating the plight of the Fulani herders and the farmers in the Middle Belt (43,59).…”

“…The herders' grievances among the causes of eco-violence are harassment in the host communities, cattle rustling, loss of lives, and denial of access to grazing fields (65)(66)(67). States' failures enable the emergence of ungoverned spaces that are conducive atmospheres for the proliferation of conflict (4,43,46). The proliferation of military-grade weapons fuels and elongates these conflicts (10,46).…”

“…There have been 'incessant attacks' on communities in Benue state by Fulani militia (43); such escalations in violent attacks were recorded and reported by the Uppsala Conflict Data Program -UCDP (7) The nepotistic domestic policies of President Buhari did not just justify the grievances of the contending groups but also created a conducive environment for the favoured groupin this case, the Fulani herdersto address their grievances, thus the escalation of eco-violence.…”

“…These issues have been exacerbated by ethnicity and exclusionary practices (42). Insecurity and the emergence of 'ungoverned spaces' are also fuelling these conflicts (4,43). Recently, corruption related to the vested interests of agro investors and elites has emerged as additional critical factors in the recent upsurge of ecoviolence (10,44); likewise, the framing, construction, and representation of people's lives and the conflicts over water and grazing fields (24,41,45).…”

‘Crimelordism’: Understanding a New Phenomenon in Armed Banditry in Nigeria

“…Organized criminals and insurgents build safe havens and conduct illicit governance within the ungoverned territories (Ojo, 2020). In the absence of firm authoritative control by the state, the affected population are systematically enmeshed in the illicit governance systems of the anti-state forces.…”