IDENTITY AND ‘FULANIZATION’ OF BANDITRY IN NIGERIA: THE FULANI AS A ‘CRIMINAL TRIBE’.

Abstract

The belief that Fulani and bandits can be equated has recently become a source of debate among researchers and opinion shapers. Several views have been advanced, believing that Fulani constitutes a security challenge. In contrast, others thought they share normal criminal behavior that has nothing to do with their tribe, as such bandits should be identified and treated as criminals and not by their tribe. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how ‘criminal identity’ is equated with the Fulani tribe in Nigeria to find the extent of its implication on the security of most innocent Fulani people. The analysis in this article was based on social identity theory, which describes how a specific identity is generated, propagated, and accepted. This is a qualitative study that gathered its data from secondary sources. The researchers used journal articles, newspapers, and pertinent government reports to analyze qualitative data. The findings of this study show that the identity of the Fulani tribe has been criminalized in Nigeria, and it has gained widespread acceptability. This study believes that criminalizing the entire tribe through profiling stops, while banditry is thoroughly considered and treated as a non-Fulani cause, criminals exacerbate criminality. The article recommends establishing effective policies by the government to mitigate the spread of criminalizing tribes based on the actions of the criminal ones among them.