A team of researchers, representatives of security and intelligence agencies and other stakeholders, on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, held a Validation Workshop on armed banditry in Nigeria.
The workshop was a feedback of a TETFUND funded project titled “Armed Bandits and Banditry in Nigeria: History, Character and Panacea” led by Prof Olajide Akanji of the Department of Political Science, University of Ibadan as the principal investigator (PI).
Other members of the team are: Prof. Adebimpe Adenugba of the Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan; Prof. Rasidi Okunola of the Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan; Prof. Olubukola S. Adesina of the Department of Political Science, University of Ibadan; Prof. Oludayo Tade of the Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan; Prof. Bentina Mathias of the Department of Sociology/Anthropology, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka; and Dr. Nathaniel Danjibo of the Department of Peace, Security and Humanitarian Studies, University of Ibadan.
The Research Team
The four-hour online workshop featured presentations by the members of the research team and a robust discussion on the menace of armed banditry in the country and the way forward.
Participants at the stakeholders’ engagement included representatives from the Office of the National Security Adviser, Air Force, Navy, UNDP Nigeria, Commanders of Oyo and Ekiti Amotekun, civil society organizations and other invited members of the public.
Speaking earlier at the event, the Principal Investigator (PI), Prof. Akanji stated that the main objective of the research was to investigate the phenomenon of banditry in Nigeria, focusing on its history/origins, causes and sustaining factors, character (forms, dimensions, trends and patterns) and solutions.
According to him, the data for the research was collected through key informant interviews (KII), in-depth interviews (IDI), focus group discussions (FGDs) and case studies. The research sites, which were purposively selected, were: Sokoto and Kaduna (North-west), Benue and Plateau (North-central), Anambra and Ebonyi (South-east), and Oyo and Ekiti (South-west).
Based on the findings of the research, the team highlighted the impact of banditry on agriculture, economic and social life of the people in the affected areas. They noted that there had been a significant reduction in farming activities and production as the people could not cultivate far distant farms due to the fear of invasion, kidnapping and killing by the bandits. Also, many have become jobless and are unable to carry out their responsibilities to their families.
It was also stated that people are afraid of going to school, market or places of worship, and are careful to move at night and there is night curfew in some places.
The spate of banditry in the affected areas were said to be as a result of the presence of informants in the community, overpopulation, shortage of farmland, collaboration of some community youth with the perpetrators, inter-community dispute, quest to displace residents, civilization, among other factors.
Shedding light on the gender dimension of banditry, one of the team members revealed that people in the affected areas experience displacement, marital separation, loss of loved ones, loss of livelihood, as well as heightened tension in homes. They are also subjected to fear and psychological trauma as a result of what they witness and experience during attacks by the bandits. While men experience the inability to fulfil their traditional roles as providers, leading to social dishonour and familial strain, women are often subjected to sexual violence, including forced marriage, rape, and other forms of sexual assault.
The participants noted the strain on inter-ethnic relations in the country as a result of the stereotyping of the bandits, who are believed to come from a particular ethnic group or the other. The researchers, however, reported that a counter-narrative from the findings shows that banditry transcends a single ethnic narrative.
Furthermore, the consensus among research participants was that governments at all levels have been reactionary to the banditry challenge instead of being proactive. The stakeholders urged the government to do more in combating banditry in the country, especially ensuring synergy between traditional institutions, government security apparatuses and community leaders in eradicating the menace.
Some of the recommendations proffered by the researchers include: Improving capacity and quality of security, development of robust policies on tackling banditry at national, state, local government and community levels, provision of basic communication gadgets by government to community members/leaders for the purpose of intelligence gathering, and strict penalties, including the death penalty, for bandits and their informants in the community.
Lauding the efforts of the researchers, one of the stakeholders recommended that the federal government should, as a matter of urgency, approve the establishment of state police, noting that this will go a long way in securing vulnerable communities.
Another stakeholder suggested that there should be a wider forum for deliberating on the issue of banditry in country, urging the facilitators of the event to put together a face-to-face programme to enable more contributions.
