ABSTRACT
Youths
and political thuggery has become very rampant in Africa and Nigeria,
especially in Kaduna State. This research work looks at it causes, effects and
to proffer possible solutions to such disgusted attitude. The research is
divided into five chapters, chapter one: introduction, chapter two: literature
review, chapter three: research methodology, chapter four: presentation and
analysis of data, chapter five: summary, conclusion, findings and
recommendation. The sample was made up of five hundred (500) questionnaire from
eight local government areas of the state, using systematic sampling
techniques. The instrument used for collection of data was questionnaire while
analysis of data was performed through the use of sample frequency and
percentage, test and Pearson product moment correlation coefficient (P.P.M.C.C)
was used. The research discovered that poverty and unemployment are among the
causes of political thuggery in Kaduna state, and that absence of good
governance and low political culture are also contributory factors to the
menace of thuggery and violence.
CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND
TO THE STUDY
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most
Merciful. All praises are to the Almighty Allah, the Creator, the Sustainer and
the Nourisher of the Universe. May the peace, blessing and mercy of Allah
(S.W.T) be upon His noble Prophet, Muhammad (S.W.T) who indeed delivered the
mission of guidance successfully. Similarly, may Almighty Allah (S.W.T) be
pleased with the Prophet‟s household,
companions and those who followed them in sincerity to the Last Day.
The basic aim of the religion of Islam is the
inculcation of moral values and Allah‟s consciousness. In view of this, the religion
abhors all immoral activities and ungodly attitudes. The following Qur‟anic verse substantiates the statement.
Say: the things that my Lord hath indeed forbidden are:
shameful deeds, whether open or secret; sins and trespasses against truth or
reason; assigning of partners to Allah, for which He hath given no authority;
and saying things about Allah of which ye have no knowledge. (Al- A‟araf: 33).
The
proliferation organizations of thugs are not only a threat to the existence of people but have a serious
threat to the Nigeria nascent democracy. The thugs organizations with variant
names, such as „ecomog‟
(Borno) Area Boys (Sokoto) Kauraye (Kaduna) Yan
Sara suka (Bauchi) and Yan kalare (Gombe) have become
impediment to the development of peaceful democracy in Northern Nigeria in
particular and Nigeria at large. Since the re-introduction of electoral
democracy in 1999, the thugs groups who were mostly unemployed youth were
usually sponsored by desperate politicians who used them as tools for the
promotion of their selfish desire and later discard them. The discarded youths
remain without alternative but to
indulge in all sorts of crimes such as rapping, and killing, which are strongly
condemned by Islam.
The said criminal
activities were usually
lodged against innocent people and in some rare occasions on their masters
(sponsors) who were unable to settle
them or by the instigation of others.
Kushee
(2008:159-161) opined that, to understand the phenomenon of political thuggery
one has to look at the social- political environment under which they operate.
Nigeria as a competitive state has witnessed, inter /intra – communal violence.
The genesis of the state of unrest in Nigeria may be attributed majorly to the
level of illiteracy, poverty and electoral system that encourages excessive and
unchecked power coupled with the impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators of
crimes. In view of this, this research is designed to critically examine the
activities of political thugs with a view to proffering solutions in the light
of Islam.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Islamic religious moral
institution appears to be the major institution that promotes moral values. On
the other hand, the secular system that negates religious ethics particularly
that of Islam tends to promote social
vices and have acknowledged the activities of thugs for
their ulterior motives of tarnishing religious consciousness. The unbearable
calamities that were befallen societies as a result of the activities of thugs
appear to be an unending issue. Thus, many solutions proffered to deal with it appear
to be insufficient and incapable of curbing its menace. The recurrent cases of
political thuggery especially during and after elections have not only affected
the effectiveness of Nigerian electoral system but have continued to deny the
electorates the right – candidates that will respond to the challenges of
thugs, among other things. The episode of 2007 election in SabonGari Local
Government Area of Kaduna state where there was heavy loss of lives and
properties justified this assertion.
Therefore,
unceasing violence as a result of the activities of the Nigeria political class
has become subject of worry and concern. The government of Nigeria is finding
it extremely difficult to handle the level of insecurity that pose a great
threat to the citizens of Nigeria.
The
high rate of crimes have resulted to a rise in ethnic nationalism and movements with each ethnic
group claiming socio
–
economic deprivations and
marginalization. Consequently,
each ethnic group resulted to
control over its perceived territory. Thus, enmity and hatred led to inter –
communal and intra – communal conflicts. Therefore, the State lost the capacity
to discharge its security functions, particularly the police. This led to the
informal devolution of community policing and security services such as armed
ethnic, religious militia, vigilante groups, and community defense groups to
protect their lives and properties. These groups are largely made up of young
people, some as young as eight years. The proliferation of communal conflict
has made Nigerian youth more directly involved in armed violence in the last
decade more than any other time.
Despite
the numerous solutions proffered, so far, to tackle the menace of political
thuggery, yet the problem persists especially during electioneering campaigns,
elections and after.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The major objectives of this research
include:
1. To trace the root causes of political
thugs, in Kaduna state.
2. To critically study the motivating
factors responsible for the negative change in the attitudes of the youths in
the area of study.
3. To explain the implications of the
activities of thugs in society.
4. To proffer solutions from Islamic
perspective, to the detrimental activities of political thugs.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The
participation of youth in political thugs during campaign and during election
is highly rampant. This leads to serious injuries and even loss of lives.
The
society of Kaduna state that was known for both religious and cultural values
is now engulfed with devastating moral degradation as a result of the
activities of political thugs who have no respect to either religious values or
to elders.
The
insecurity posed by the activities political thugs not only is it responsible for the lost of religious
values but has immensely discouraged foreign investments, and indigenous
efforts in stabilizing and improving the economic growth of the state. Thus,
poverty rate is always in increase with its attendance consequences.
Therefore,
any research that would educate people about the danger political thugs avenue
for good leadership and peaceful co- existence among people would be of great
significance.
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. What are the main factors that
motivate and influence the involvement of youths into political thugs?
2. What are the causes of political
thuggery in the society of Kaduna State.
3. What are the implications of the
activities of the political thugs in the area of study?
4.
How
can the activities of political thugs be controlled.
BASIC ASSUMPTIONS
1.
Lack of proper religious education is responsible for the influence of Muslim youths into
political thuggery.
2.
Religious
institutions are capable of inculcating moral values through which political
thuggery can be handled.
3.
Negligent
of religious practices is responsible for the promotion of political thuggery.
RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS
1.
There is no significant relationship between ignorance of religious
guidance and the socio political problem.
2.
There
is no significant relation between illiteracy, poverty and political thugs.
3.
There
is no significant difference between the participation of men and women in the
political thuggery in Kaduna State.
4.
There
is no significant relationship between the incapability of the National
Security outfit and the political thuggery.
5. There is no significant relationship
between employment rate of the youth and political thuggery.
SCOPE AND LIMITATION
The
research looks at the relevance of Islamic preventive strategies to the menace
of political thugs with specific focus on Kaduna state. Therefore, the research
dwelled on the findings of the level of participation of the youths
in Kaduna State in political thuggery during elections.
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