A Professor of International Relations, Osita Agbu, has called on government at all levels to provide good governance and maintain a united front in the face of insurgency ravaging some parts of the country.
Agbu, Dean, Faculty of Management and Social Sciences, Baze University, Abuja, made the call at the maiden annual memorial lecture in honour of late Prof Ogaba Oche at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs(NIIA), Lagos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the paper was titled, “The Complex Phenomenon of Terrorism and Nigerian Foreign Policy”.
“With good governance, many of the grievances that lead to frustration and violence causing terrorism are reduced,” Agbu said.
According to him, terrorism is a constant occurrence in the 21st century post-cold war era that cannot be understated.
He said that terrorism had been one of the negative aspects of globalisation which frequently arose as a local problem and assumed international dimensions.
“Nigeria is today, a victim of domestic terrorism with international dimensions.
“Combating terrorism is undoubtably one of the most serious security challenges to the Nigerian State today,” he said.
Agbu added that the Boko Haram attacks in various northern states of the country indicated that terrorism had indeed arrived and required urgent response.
“Failure to tackle terrorism has sent wrong signals to domestic demands, international terrorists, as well as the international community about the country’s fragility.
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“There is generally little consensus on the root causes of terrorism and very little agreement has been reached on possible remedies at all levels,” he said.
He noted that some terrorist tactics included suicide bombing, the use of biological and chemical weapons, cyber-terrorism and threat of nuclear terrorism.
Agbu further stated that terrorism could be characterised by four essential features.
“First, the act must be violent, the direct targets of such an attack are usually non-combatants who are usually without influence on the motive of such act.
“The act takes place in an environment of relative peace, then its ultimate motive for the resort to violence is to cause fear.
“Nowadays, terrorism is characterised by mass suicide attacks and even the use of lethal gas.
“Such was the case of the February 1993 explosion at the World Trade Centre’s parking garage which killed six people.
“Also, the September 11, 2011 attacks on the twin towers in New York that killed about two thousand innocent people is another sad example,” he said.
He also said that terrorism had violated the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country.
“Terrorism, as manifested in Nigeria has implications for Nigeria’s foreign policy, and generally for national stability and security,” Agbu said.
