CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
Nigeria is a multi-religious, multi-ethnic, and multicultural society with enormous potential for economic, social, and democratic development. However, intense conflicts and violence that manifested within it even from its earliest time under the colonial rule have made development and progress elude the country. Nigeria is usually characterized as a deeply divided state in which major political issues are vigorously contested along the lines of complex ethnic, religious, and regional divisions. The causes of these conflicts may not be unconnected with the way and manner religion is portrayed to its adherents and mistrust between the followers of the various religious and ethnic groups. The issues that generate the fiercest contestation include those that are considered fundamental to the existence and legitimacy of the state, over which competing groups tend to adopt exclusionary, winner takes all strategies, which include the control of state power, resource allocation, and citizenship.
Ethnic conflict has been rightly defined as one of the greatest obstacles to meaningful development in Africa (The Courier 1993). In Nigeria, this sort of competition and rivalry among various ethnic groups is seen as a product of colonial contact. The ethnic factor, however, did not diminish with the advent of independence; rather, it became a yardstick for measuring contribution to the national development effort and especially for allocating and distributing power and national resources. As Nigeria is currently engaged in another exercise aimed at establishing a sustainable form of democracy, there is urgent need to address  perceived factors that may militate against the success of this endeavour. In certain quarters, the annulment of the democratic transition programme by the military in 1993 at the conclusion of the presidential polls is believed to have been motivated by ethnic sentiments. On a similar note, the 30-month senseless slaughter occasioned by the Nigerian civil war from 1967 to 1970 was anchored on ethnic rivalry.
In view of this, as well as the implications of pronounced conflict over power sharing and resource allocation, the ethnic question demands continuous examination if efforts to achieve a beer Nigeria arc to succeed. In addition, this type of analysis may go a long way in preventing ethnic conflict, since it proffers suggestions on how to lessen ethnic tensions and resolve contentious issues. Feasible solutions to ethnic problems can only emanate from well-grounded examinations of the phenomenon itself. Ethnic conflict obviously affect the development of a society, since this can only take place within a peaceful and democratic context that is devoid of rancour.
Inter conflict violence has reached unprecedented levels and hundreds have been killed with much more wounded or displaced from their homes on account of their ethnic or religious identification. Schooling for children has been disrupted and interrupted; businesses have lost billions of naira and property worth much more destroyed." The character of the Nigerian State is responsible for the country's deepening ethno-religious contradictions. This plural nature fuels a constant feeling of distrust between the component units, and the fear of one ethnic or religious group dominating the other is rife. Even though, the Federal Government of Nigeria has put in a lot of effort in order to solve or reduce the menace of religious conflict in the country, in most cases these efforts have yielded little or no success. Therefore, the government needs to be hyper-active in its approach to its policies on religious-based conflict prevention and resolution.
The term violence has attracted a wide range of definitions in literature. The Princeton Cognitive Science Laboratory defines it as "an act of aggression (as one against a person who resists); a turbulent state resulting in injuries and destruction; ferocity: the property of being wild or turbulent." Violence is an integral part of man's existence and a common occurrence in human societies.
It could be due to differences in political ideologies, as was evident during the Cold War period, and terrorism, bad governance, ethnic nationalism, economic and religious reasons, and in some cases a combination of two or more of these factors.
Ethnic groups are defined as a community of people who share cultural and linguistic characteristics including history, tradition, myth, and origin. Scholars have been trying to develop a theoretical approach to ethnicity and ethnic conflict for a long time. Conflicts can be adaptive or maladaptive, functional/constructive or dysfunctional. Indeed human and societal progress over the ages, for example, has been driven by conflict. But the liquidation of entire peoples and cultures has also been driven by conflict. The outcome of a given conflict, therefore, depends on how it is managed by contending forces. Lack of social reciprocity and/or tolerance for differences of opinion increases the risk of violence and war.