ALLEGIANCE TO NON-ISLAMIC GOVERNMENT, THE QUESTION OF INFIDELITY AND THE BOKO HARAM INSURGENCY IN NIGERIA: AN ANALYSIS

Abstract

Experts have made efforts to trace the root and ideological source of Boko Haram insurgency in Nigeria. Some have related it to the socio- economic problems and poverty in Northeast of Nigeria, while others viewed it as a Muslim political conspiracy to bring down a particular government, this led to negligence from the side of a particular regime which dismissed the problem as an ethno-religious political tool used by oppositions to wrestle power from it and this led to escalation of the crisis. However, many scholars have come to agree that the ideology is basically a takfīrī thought which considers Muslims with opposing views as infidels, especially those who accept a non-Islamic system of governance like that of Nigeria. This line of thought therefore, legalises unprovoked violence. This paper examines the veracity of the Boko Haram thought, establishes its ideological sources, and proffers solutions to the phenomenon. The methodologies followed are a combination of hermeneutical and historical approaches.