Corruption and the Challenge of Boko Haram Terrorism in Nigeria: A Case of the Nigerian Armed Forces

Abstract

The study examines the extent to which corruption in the Nigerian armed forces has been able to undermine the fight against Boko Haram terrorism in Nigeria. The study relied on the qualitative content analysis of secondary sources of data, and the theory of structural functionalism was adopted as the tool of analysis for the study. A thrust through the evolution and acts of terror of Boko Haram in Nigeria revealed that poverty, inequality, and corruption precipitated the rise of the sect and that Abubakar Shekau adopted a more extremist doctrine and approach for the sect after the death of Mohammed Yusuf in 2009. Since then it has been mayhem for Nigeria; the sect accounting for over 20,000 deaths and the displacement of over 1.3 million people. The paper argued that corruption has eaten deep into the Nigerian armed forces and has undermined the fight against Boko Haram through the theft of defence appropriations, the purchase of substandard weaponry, the creation of fake defence contracts, and the unavailability of logistical supports for and desertion of soldiers on the frontline. The paper, therefore, recommends the adoption of genuine political will in the anti-graft war and the strengthening of existing anti-graft agencies, the diligent monitoring of defence contracts and the performance of offsets arrangements in defence contracts, the introduction of socio-economic empowerment programs to create employment for unemployed youths particularly in the Northeast, and the prompt provision of adequate military logistics and sophisticated arms and ammunition for the soldiers on the frontline.