Gusau Journal of Sociology
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EFFECTS OF KIDNAPPING ON VICTIMS’ EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES IN CHIKUN LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA
Get PDFKidnapping poses a significant threat to educational stability in Nigeria, particularly in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State. This qualitative study investigated the effects of kidnapping on the academic activities of victims and explores coping mechanisms employed by victims and their families. Data for the study were obtained from 20 IDI respondents made up of kidnap victims and their family members from six political wards of Chikun, Kujama, Rido, Kakau, Sabon-Gari and Kuriga. The study adopted the theory of social disorganization as its theoretical framework In-depth interviews with victims revealed that kidnapping disrupts educational continuity, leading to reduced school enrollment and academic performance. Ethnographic analysis highlighted the long-term psychological and socio-economic impacts on victims. The study recommends multifaceted interventions, including victim support and counseling programs, financial assistance for educational expenses, and community-based initiatives to mitigate the effects of kidnapping. It stressed the need for policymakers, educators, and stakeholders to emplace targeted support mechanisms to ensure educational continuity and resilience among kidnap victims
INSECURITY IN NIGERIA: PERCEPTIONS OF SELECTED LAGOS STATE RESIDENTS ON NIGERIA NEWSPAPERS’ COVERAGE OF CRIME ON THE GRATIFICATION OF THEIR SAFETY INFORMATION NEED
Get PDFInsecurity of lives and property in Nigeria has continued unabated through crime perpetration of all kinds. All forms of violent crimes, including property crimes are reported in the newspapers virtually on daily basis. Concerned by what the feelings of the audience could be on the resonating outcome of Nigerian newspapers’ crime reportage, the attendant palpable fear, anxiety, a sense of insecurity and whether or not the newspapers’ crime stories gratified their safety information need, this study adopted a non-probability sampling technique and through an in-depth interviews probed into the perspectives of purposively selected Lagos State residents on Nigerian newspapers’ coverage of crime and the gratification of their safety information need. Adopting purposive sampling technique, a total of twelve literate respondents, across the three Senatorial Districts (Lagos Central, Lagos East and Lagos West) who had lived and worked in Lagos State for at least five years preceding the study were interviewed. Findings revealed a sense of insecurity and palpable fear among the respondents; Lagos State is prone to crime; murder, robbery, kidnapping, while payment of ransom to secure the release of kidnapped victims were rife. The study revealed that the newspapers feasted on crime stories, but embraced episodic crime reportage. The newspaper crime stories were found educative and gratified the safety information need of the reader even as the police, judiciary and the political class were found culpable in crime festering in Nigeria. The paper recommends that newspapers should engage more in investigative reporting of crime by reporting it like an epidemic while the country’s security personnel require constant intelligence report in addition to being proactive, and professional. The Judiciary should ensure the dispensation of justice in all crime cases
EFFECTS OF MILITIA ACTIVITIES ON YAM PRODUCTION AMONG RURAL FARMERS IN UKUM LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, BENUE STATE, NIGERIA
Get PDFOvertime, the existence of militia groups and their activities has caused great concern in Nigeria and Benue State in particular. Their activities have constituted threat to human security as well as food production. This study examined the factors that birthed armed militia groups and how the activities of these groups have affected the production of yam, a major staple food in Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State. The study hypothesized that there is no relationship between militia activities and yam production among rural farmers in Ukum Local Government Area. The General Strain Theory was adopted as the study’s theoretical perspective. The study utilized Cross-sectional design whereby the study population of 384 (using Krejcie and Morgan sample size determination formula) was drawn from 216,986 residents of Ukum Local Government Area. However, the study sampled 100 farmers through purposive and snowball sampling technique due to the volatile nature of the area. Findings of the study reveals that high rate of poverty, fear of domination/injustice, failure of law enforcement agencies to tame the activities of militia groups, and resurgence of political thugs that have been abandoned by their political godfathers, accounted for the formation and proliferation of militia groups in the study area. Results of correlation statistics show a positive correlation between the existence of militia activities and production of yam. Thus, ethnic militia activities negatively affect the production yam in the study locale. The study recommends, among other things, that concerted efforts should be made by the State government to fully develop the productive forces; provide avenues where youths will be engaged to alleviate poverty in Ukum and indeed Benue State, security personnel should be proactive in responding to identified threats, arrest and prosecute offenders to deter others, politicians should stop empowering youths with arms and the youths should be actively engaged in political matters as this will remove the tendencies of domination and marginalization between them and the political elites
CHALLENGES CONFRONTING VIGILANTE GROUPS IN EFFECTIVE CRIME CONTROL IN BENUE STATE, NIGERIA
Get PDFVigilante groups’ contributions to crime control are invaluable. However, the activities of vigilante groups have faced operational and institutional challenges. These challenges have negatively affected the operations of vigilante groups in crime control in Benue State. The study investigated the challenges of vigilante groups in crime control in Benue State with a view to suggesting ways of curbing those challenges for enhanced effectiveness of vigilante groups in Benue State. Three Local Government Areas – Katsina-Ala, Makurdi, and Oturkpo, were selected across the three Senatorial districts in Benue State for the study. The population of the study comprised vigilante operatives, religious leaders, traditional rulers and members of the public. The study adopted a survey design. Questionnaire and in-depth interview (IDI) were used to generate data from 367 respondents using the Taro Yamane sample size determination formula. Simple random sampling and purposive sampling were deployed for the selection of respondents and interviewees. Twelve interview sessions were conducted across the sampled Local Government Areas. The quantitative data were presented in frequency and percentages while qualitative data were presented in narrative form. The study identified lack of logistics, shortage of crime fighting equipment, absence of enabling legal instrument for the operation of vigilante groups, human rights violation, corruption, insufficient training among vigilantes and vested interests, as the challenges of vigilante group in the study area. The study recommends the enactment of laws recognizing vigilante groups; provision of needed crime fighting equipment by stakeholders; adequate funding, provision of logistic support as well as proper training and reorientation of vigilante operatives to respect the fundamental human rights of suspects. 
UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIAL CONTEXT OF THE NAME ‘BIAFRA’ IN CONTEMPORARY IGBO SOCIAL CONSCIOUSNESS IN NIGERIA
Get PDFName is a social construct that gives identity to people in society. The name ‘Biafra’ has an interpretation and social context that is embedded with meanings among the Igbo of South-East, Nigeria. The name ‘Biafra’ expresses idea, social interpretation and value among Igbo people in their social interaction. This study explains the historical antecedents of the name ‘Biafra’, the contemporary use of Biafra by the Igbo for identity construction, social cohesion, and contextual symbol of the name ‘Biafra’ in Nigeria. Using qualitative method of data collection, key informant interviews, in-depth interviews (IDI) and focus group discussion (FGD), twenty-six interviews were conducted with Biafra activists/representatives, Biafra war veterans and youth leaders in two selected communities namely, Aba and Onitsha in Abia and Anambra states, respectively. Data collected were analyzed using ethnographic content analysis. The findings of this study show that the name ‘Biafra’ holds social and cultural symbols that are presented as Biafuru (come and see) and Bia-fara (come and take) which is a symbol of olile-anya (hope) and nzoputa (emancipation). All these create Biafra symbolism for agitation, social identity, recognition, freedom and ofu-obi (social cohesion) that are associated with the Igbo society in Nigeria
PATRONAGE OF ANTENATAL CARE SERVICES IN ZAMFARA STATE, NIGERIA
Get PDFUtilisation of antenatal care (ANC) services by women during pregnancy plays a pivotal role in averting pregnancy related morbidity and mortality. However, utilisation of the services remains low over the years in Nigeria and Zamfara State, in particular. This study examined the patronage of ANC services in urban, semi-urban and rural areas of Zamfara State, Nigeria. Quantitative data were used for the study. A total of 384 copies of questionnaire were administered to women of child-bearing age that had children under-five, using the Multistage Cluster Sampling technique. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21 was used for the data analysis. The Health-Seeking Behavior model developed by Ronald Max Anderson was adopted as the theoretical framework for the study. The study discovered that majority of mothers received ANC services from skilled healthcare providers at least, once, but the utilisation of the specific components of the services was low. Majority of the respondents did not comply with the current 8 ANC Visits, did not take folic acid and iron tablets daily and had not HIV test during pregnancy. Some women did not use the services at all due to reasons including lack of husband/ mother in-law’s permission, patronage of traditional birth attendants, lack of interest, not experiencing any pregnancy related illness, distance to healthcare facility, transportation problems, insecurity and poverty. The study recommends that the Zamfara State government should ensure availability, affordability and accessibility of ANC drugs at all government health facilities. The policy of compelling pregnant women to patronize ANC services as well as carrying out mobilization and enlightenment campaigns throughout the State at regular intervals, should be encouraged
ANALYSIS OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC RISK FACTORS OF MENTAL ILLNESS AMONG YOUTHS IN KWARA STATE, NIGERIA: IMPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE
Get PDFThe study examined socio-economic correlates and mental illness among youths in Kwara State, North Central, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling procedure was employed to select 114 respondents from three council areas in the three senatorial districts of the state using structured questionnaire. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics and cross tabulation. Findings of the study revealed that 79.8% and 81.6% of respondents indicated that financial hardship and unemployment often take the center stage as the most socio-economic risk factors accountable to the increasing rate of mental illness among the youths while 88.6% and 83.3% of respondents respectively reported incessant strikes embarked upon by teachers/lecturers of educational institutions and undue threats by government security personnel. Similarly, 91.2% of respondents revealed poor social relationships maintained by the youths amongst other critical issues. Social workers were identified as playing crucial role in the areas of counseling, advocacy, collaborative services/referrals sequel to which a recommendation was made for inclusion of social work and mental health in the curriculum of primary and secondary schools as well as form part of general study courses in Nigerian higher institutions
INTERNET USERS’ PERCEPTION OF THE PREVALENCE OF ONLINE INVESTMENT FRAUD AND VICTIMISATION IN NIGERIA
Get PDFThis study investigated the prevalence of online investment fraud and victimisation among internet users in Nigeria, focusing on sociodemographic characteristics, investment behaviours, victimisation. experiences, and perceptions of fraud risk factors. The study employed a cross-sectional survey design, utilizing Google Forms for data collection and convenience sampling to recruit 164 participants from Ilorin, Kwara State. The study adopted the Routine Activities Theory (RAT) as theoretical framework. Findings reveal that a majority of respondents are young individuals with tertiary education, indicating their susceptibility to online investment fraud due to limited financial experience and a desire for quick financial gains. Notably, over half of the participants actively engage in online investments. In addition, family and friends' recommendations and the pursuit of financial freedom influencing investment decisions significantly. However, a substantial proportion of investors report falling victim to online investment fraud, predominantly through Ponzi/pyramid schemes, crypto currency scams, and forex trading scams. Financial losses vary among victims, with factors such as lack of regulation, poverty, unemployment, and insufficient training on fraud prevention contributing to vulnerability. Statistical analysis indicates a significant relationship between investment experience and the perception of high returns as a risk factor for fraud victimisation. These findings underscore the urgent need for regulatory measures, public awareness campaigns, and educational initiatives to mitigate the risks associated with online investment fraud in Nigeria
A REVIEW OF THE EFFECTS OF WOMEN LITERACY AND POVERTY REDUCTION ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA
Get PDFDespite the potential of the strategies put in place by successive governments in Nigeria, women's literacy and poverty reduction for sustainable development, Nigeria continue to grapple with persistent challenges in realizing the full transformative impact of educated and empowered women in the country. This paper examined the effects of women literacy and poverty alleviation on sustainable development in Nigeria. The paper relied on documentary sources of data obtained from textbooks, journal articles, official gazettes, conference papers and the internet. The paper deployed the Liberal Feminism theory to provide a theoretical guide for the study. The paper observed that the relationship between women's literacy, poverty alleviation, and sustainable development in Nigeria is complex and multifaceted and emphasized that empowering women is not only a matter of social justice but a catalyst for sustainable development. It recommends a conscious implementation of policies and programs that should aim to eliminate barriers to education for girls and women, including addressing financial constraints, cultural norms, and discriminatory practices as well as the development and implementation of targeted economic empowerment initiatives, such as vocational training and entrepreneurship programs, to enhance women's skills and make them job creators rather than job seekers, thereby increasing their participation in the formal economy
FEMALE CRIMINALITY IN NIGERIA: A FEMINIST CONCEPTUAL AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVE
Get PDFCriminality is no longer considered a male phenomenon as the involvement of women and girls in crime is on the increase in Nigeria and globally, even as the rate of women and girls’ participation in outlawed behaviour is still relatively low compared to that of men and young boys. Of the current total population of 78,621 prison inmates in Nigeria, males account for 97.8% (or approximately 76,891) while the female sex makes up 2.2% (1,729 approximately). The criminal justice seems to lack a comprehensive and contextualized understanding of the gendered criminological pathways of women which include maternal roles, trauma, structural poverty and physical abuse, among others. This work aimed at a feminist conceptual and theoretical review of female criminality with a view to highlighting the distinctive nature of female criminality. The paper relied on secondary sources of data for its analysis. Based on the review, it was found that women’s pathway to criminality is gendered and the cause(s) of female criminality are multidimensional, ranging from running away from home, drug abuse, child abuse, sexual victimization, domestic abuse, structural poverty and the need for survival. The paper recommends that all identified triggers of female criminality should be addressed by both governmental and non-governmental organizations to mitigate the incidence of what appears to be a spike in female offending in Nigeria and even beyond