The Nature and Character of Civil-Military Relations and Peacebuilding in the South-West Nigeria: 2011-2018 (Published)
Civil-military relations (CMR) are the relationships that exist between the civilian authority (CAU) and non-governmental civilian groups (NGCG) versus the military. While peacebuilding is a method of capacity building and reconciliation that is aimed at preventing conflict or the restart of it. The study examines the nature and character of civil-military relations and peace building in South West Nigeria, 2011-2018. The research method adopted for this study is a documentary method, using content analysis to analyze the content of the work. Observation and documentary studies were an instrument of collecting data for the research work. The theory employed for this study is agency theory. Findings revealed that: there is a constitutional provision that provides for the subordination of the military to civilian authority, hence the military willingly accept their subordinate position to the civilian authority or his representatives; Further findings show that; there were conflicts between the non-governmental civilian groups and the military, hence negative peace existed between them; the conflicts between both parties are in the area of harassment and intimidation of the masses. The study recommended that: the National Assembly should enact a law that will make only retired military officers to be appointed as minister of Defence and Police respectively. Again, Independent Monitoring Operation on Military (IMOM) should be set up by the National Assembly from among the non-governmental civilian groups to monitor the movement of soldiers and their activities, with power to sanction and punish soldiers.
Keywords: Civil-Military Relations, civilian authority, non-governmental civilian group, peacebuilding, shirking, working
DEMOCRATIZATION AND THE MILITARY IN NIGERIA: A CASE FOR AN ENDURING CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN THE FOURTH REPUBLIC AND BEYOND. (Published)
This paper examines the military and democracy within the context of Nigeria’s historical and socio political reality. Nigeria’s inability to foster a sustainable democratic tradition has negative consequences for the country. The quest for democracy and therefore development in Nigeria has been hindered by the disruptive influences of militarism. The military’s love for power stems partially from a love for wealth and partly from its self-image as the custodian of the independent and corporate existence of the country. If the democratic tradition is to be sustained in Nigeria, constitutional as well as policy measures should be adopted to tackle the issue of militarism.
Keywords: Civil-Military Relations, Democratization, Fourth Republic, Military, Nigeria