Corruption, Conflicts and the Challenges of Insecurity in Nigeria: A Case Study of Jos North Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria

Abstract

This paper attempts to demonstrate how corruption is the bane of political crises in Nigeria, using Jos North Local Governments Area of Plateau State as a case study. Incessant crises in the area were traced to various types of corruption among which were political and religious corruption. The crises which became heightened in 2001 as a result of corrupt political and religious leaders raised the issue of indigeneship and settlership to an intolerable level, which resulted in divisions and disunity, thus paving way for incessant urban uprising. Using qualitative methods, data were drawn from secondary sources such as books, journals, internet articles, newspapers, etc, with primary data drawn from interviews, surveys and focus group discussions (FGDs). The result of the study revealed that political and religious corruptions were the major causes of conflicts and insecurity in the area. The Authors therefore suggested that the Nigerian Government should find lasting solutions to the crises by giving top priority to eradication of corruption.