CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the study
While
the international order among states is quite strong, the world is not peaceful.
In the wake of globalization and the explosion in communication technologies,
new security related threats have Emerged that are to a great extent
independent of national boundaries. As a result, a new kind of war is being
waged in every country all over the world; this is because the primary threats
to national security have changed fundamentally. They no longer spring from
territorial and ideological disputes among nation states but from how far globalization,
technological threats and criminal networks have grown to challenge nation
states (Zalur & Zeckhauser 2002).
In
Nigeria today, conflict seem persistent and intractable, moreover after a decade
of complacency, we seem to be finally grasping the fact that we are fighting
for survival under the shadow of catastrophic dangers. Hence, discussions on
Nigerian National Security concept has evolved rapidly because the security
environment in which we live is dynamic and uncertain, replete with a host of
threats and challenges which are trans-national in nature that have potential
to grow more deadly (Pandya & Laipon,
2008:39).
Emerging
scenario of these trans-national threats which are irrespective of national
border and which comprises of a list of different risk factors that seem
unending spanning from different trans-national crimes like terrorism, human and
drug trafficking, money laundering etc, to widespread environmental degradation,
diseases, climate change and even political policies which might threaten our
nation’s sovereignty (Brainard & Halon, 2004), has further challenged the
concept of national security which now pertains to people rather than
territories on one hand and development rather than military on the other hand.
Now, the notion of national security captures the traditional security and human
security. National security is now perceived as total security – security of
life and property, security of the economy and the economic resource areas of the
country, security of food and raw materials resources, of general health of the
people, of environment and national integrity, and preservation of all that society
considers to be important and valuable (Imobighe, 2000).
Globalization
and increased technology has led to the decline of our borders which has led to
the increased vulnerability of Nigeria
to there threats and endanger our national security. The Nigeria – Benin
border, which is located in the west of our country, is particularly notorious
for all sorts of illegal trans-border activities. For this reason, this
research work will attempt to discuss Human and drug trafficking, smuggling of goods and arms
proliferation and the dangers they pose to Nigerian national security because
these activities are the most common across the Nigeria – Benin border.
The
dilemmas that Nigeria faces with insecurities call for critical investigation
of border entry points whether they are performing their strategic functions
(Willie, 2008).
1.2 statement of the problem
Globalization,
have important security implications. Most dangerously, a variety of threats
have become global in scope and more serious in their effects as a result of
the spread of knowledge, the dispersion of advanced technologies, and the
movements of people. These same developments, combined with expanding global economic interactions,
contribute to some of the problems and resentments that lie at the root of
these security threats. But paradoxically, many of those same aspects of
globalization offer new opportunities to achieve economic growth and democracy,
thereby ameliorating the threats as well as some of their underlying causes.
The
dangers were clearly manifested in the September 11th terrorist attacks, which
showed how the Al Qaeda organization was able effectively to exploit new
communications technologies, global financial networks, and the ease of movements
of people. The response by the international community has also benefited from
some of globalization’s effects, primarily in technological advances in
communications and in military weaponry. While it is too soon to say
definitively, the result of these attacks may be to dampen some of the
globalizing trends, as financial interactions receive greater scrutiny and
security steps limit the mobility of people. Exploring the many issues raised
by the September 11th terrorist attacks is not this paper’s task, nor is
assessing the relationship between terrorism and globalization.
1.3. Objectives of the Study
The
specific or the main objectives of carrying out this research work
includes:
1.
To examine the nature and dynamics of transnational threats.
2.
To examine the peculiar transnational threats pronging the Nigeria – Benin
border.
3.
To explore the impacts of transnational threat to Nigeria’s national security
4.
To inform policy that will isolate Nigeria from transnational threats.
1.4. Research Hypothesis
Hypothesis is a tentative generation, the
validity of which remains to be tested. In its most elementary stage the
hypothesis may be any hunch, guess, imaginative idea, which becomes basis for
action or investigation.
To
achieve the desired objective, the research has the following declarative
hypothesis to validate or invalidate at the end of the research.
1.
Globalization trends increases incidence of transnational threats
2.
The weakness of the state tends to engender transnational threats
3.
Nigeria border security tends to be
hampered by transnational threats
4.
The higher the level of globalization and transnational threat the poorer the
state of national security.
1.5. Scope and Limitations of the
Study
This
research will be limited to the major transnational crimes along the Nigeria –
Benin border. They include smuggling and trafficking in arms and weapons,
drugs, humans and goods such as cars and petroleum products. The study will analyze and
examine these transnational threats and how they affect our national security.
However in the course of this research, the researcher may exceed the boundary
of his study as an instrument of explanation. A study like this will have
limitation such as time constraints, finances, mobility to acquire adequate
materials and literature on the subject matter under study.