“Beyond Amnesty: Religion as a Tool for Homeland Security in Nigeria”

1David T.E. and 2Akpobome .D.
1Departments of Religious Studies and Philosophy
2Department of Languages and Linguistics
1&2Delta State University, Abraka.
Abstract
Disasters and terrorism make the world an insecure home for humankind. From the militant movement of several groups fighting in the Niger Delta, a new form of insecurity has arisen: Boko Haram. While political amnesty has failed to curb
the youth’s thirst for gun-waving in the Niger Delta, the use of force has failed to curb the menace of Boko Haram in the Northern part of this country. To confront the multifarious internal security challenges, this paper examined the historical antecedents of these conflicts. The paper discovered that the failure of the government to address the socio-economic needs of the youths has, in a
large measure, facilitated these conflicts. It also discovered that the removal of religious studies as a core subject in the school curricula of all tiers of education in Nigeria since the early 70s in no small measure contributed to the moral and social endemic corruption that is the bane of the country. The paper therefore is of the opinion that if religion is used as a tool for dialogue much will be achieved in terms of homeland security in Nigeria. The paper proposes
the use of several religion-based institutions as a line of first attack in handling social conflicts rather than the use of military and Police force. It argues that if religion is used as a tool for national orientation, much will be achieved in reducing the incidences of corruption which in turn will reduce the rate of social
conflicts.