Boko Haram in Context: The Terrorist Organizations’s Roots in Nigeria’s Social History

Abstract

Since May 2013, the federal government of Nigeria has been trying to address the threat of Boko Haram by military means. These operations are ongoing and its details are shrouded in secrecy, but judging by the results, they have so far failed to root out the immediate and ever present threat of terrorist activity in the region, where BH has the apparent ability to strike at will. Our paper proposes a radical solution to the threat of terrorism in Northern Nigeria where the local ‘law of the land’ prevails as a source of legal jurisdiction and where feudal elements have managed to retain their social and political primacy. Our solution proposes that the tacit Western backing for the traditional Fulani ruling elements, habitual since colonial times, should now be abandoned. The policy of helping traditional emirs might have been well suited for the early-to mid-20th century, but it is now part of the problem instead of a solution. Identifying alternatives to the Fulani aristocracy is a job for intelligence services, building on forces that offer alternatives to the current status quo.

Keywords: Boko Haram, Africa, Nigeria, Terrorism in Nigeria, Northern Nigeria, Fulani Aristocracy, Joint Task Force

JEL Classification: Y90