Boko Haram and the Recurring Bomb Attacks in Nigeria: Attempt to Impose Religious Ideology through Terrorism?

Attempt to forcefully impose religious ideology and or belief on Nigeria’s secular society is not new. The leader of the Maitatsine sectarian group attempted it in 1981 and eventually led to large scale uprisings. Since the early 1980s and 2012, Nigeria has witnessed other uncountable religious related crises. Beginning from 2009, the country once again, has been stormed by large scale and unimaginable bomb attacks by the Boko Haram movement. Although Boko Haram can be compared in terms of philosophy and objectives to the Maitatsine sectarian group, its organisational planning, armed resistance, and modus operandi is Taliban and attacks executed by the groups so far the most ferocious and devastating. To arrest terrorism related offences, the Nigerian National Assembly on 17th February, 2011 passed a bill on Anti-Terrorism. Even with the Bill in place, and the invitation to negotiate by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Boko Haram attacks which initially was confined to North-Eastern Nigeria, like cancer has infected the North-Central and is spreading to Southern Nigeria. Given the inherent unsettled political and economic environment, the menace caused by Boko Haram attacks has cashed in to compound an already chaotic situation. A fall-out of the Boko Haram saga for example, is the re-awakening of the acrimonious call for a Sovereign National Conference- by implication; the so called ‘One Nigeria’ is being questioned. On the basis of this background, for the motives and intention of Boko haram, it can no longer be ignored, trivialised or abandoned. Apparently, the dynamics of terrorism in the context of Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria remains insufficiently explored. This article aims to narrow such a gap by analysing the concept of terrorism in light of the philosophy and objectives, spectrum of strategies, dimensions and networking of Boko Haram movement in Nigeria. Key words: Boko Haram; Bomb Attack; Ideology; Nigeria; Religion; Terrorism. Résumé: La Tentative d’imposer par la force l’idéologie religieuse ou de conviction et sur la société la que du Nigeria n’est pas nouvelle. Le leader du groupe sectaire Maitatsine il a tenté en 1981 et a finalement conduit à des soulèvements de grande envergure. Depuis le début des années 1980 et 2012, le Nigeria a connu d’autres crises innombrables religieuses liées. A partir de 2009, le pays encore une fois, a été pris d’assaut par grande échelle et attentats à la bombe inimaginables par le mouvement Boko Haram. Bien que Boko Haram peut être comparé en termes de philosophie et les objectifs pour le groupe Maitatsi