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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | Towards a broader conception of Nigeria's national security policy |
Author: | Peters, Jimi |
Year: | 1989 |
Periodical: | Nigerian Journal of International Affairs |
Volume: | 15 |
Issue: | 2 |
Pages: | 82-101 |
Language: | English |
Geographic term: | Nigeria |
Subjects: | economic policy defence policy |
Abstract: | In attempting to provide a broader perspective on national security in Nigeria, this article shows how past policies have failed to achieve economic, political and psychological security for Nigerians. The author argues that the state of economic, social and political underdevelopment in Nigeria is a far greater threat to its corporate existence than any perceived military threat. Undue emphasis on military security has helped to confuse the national security debate. An examination of the nature of national security planning and management and the nature of military development in Nigeria shows that the economic crisis of the 1980s has brought about a heightened awareness of the need for a more harmonious relationship between the nation's economic, foreign and defence policies. The author demonstrates that the failure of past general development policies is due to the Nigerian political environment, which is characterized not only by its unstable nature, but also by a lack of continuity in Government policies, given the way Governments change in Nigeria. In the course of the struggle for political power, political actors have manipulated ethnic, political, religious and other differences for their own interests. In conclusion, the author speculates on measures to help the nation cope with the problems identified. Notes, ref., sum. |