INSECURITY IN NORTHWEST NIGERIA: A CRITICAL ASSESSMENT OF THE ROLE OF HAUSA–FULANI INTER-GROUP RELATIONS

Abstract

Northwest Nigeria has, since 2011, experienced escalating banditry, kidnapping for ransom, cattle rustling, and communal violence. A prominent narrative advanced by some political and community leaders attributes this violence to historical oppression and provocation of the Fulani ethnic group by the Hausa majority. This article critically assesses the role of Hausa–Fulani intergroup relations in shaping insecurity in the region, drawing on a detailed rejoinder document that challenges the “oppression thesis.” Usingqualitative analysis based on interviews, government reports, media investigations, and secondary literature, the study finds that while resource competition and governance failures exist; the claim that Hausas systematically oppressed Fulanis lacks historical and empirical grounding. Instead, banditry is driven by a complex interplay of environmental degradation, youth unemployment, breakdown of traditional conflict resolution, criminal opportunism, and weak state institutions. The article applies relative deprivation theory, frustration‑aggression theory, and structural violence theory to explain how perceived grievances, real or manufactured, have been weaponized by criminal networks. The findings indicate that the Hausa–Fulani relationship is historically characterized by integration, intermarriage, and Fulani political dominance, not Hausa oppression. Policy implications include the need for accountable governance, revitalization of traditional institutions, evidence‑based counter‑narratives, disarmament, and modernization of vigilante groups.