Nigeria: Islamic Sect's Siege On Nation Borne Out of Frustration

IPS

24 June 2011

Nigeria: Islamic Sect's Siege On Nation Borne Out of Frustration

Lagos — The sectarian crisis and recent violence by extremist groups, like the Jun. 16 bomb blast on the Nigerian Police Headquarters, are borne out of anger at prevailing economic conditions rather than religion, analysts say.

+++ 

Boko Haram accused Nigeria's government of being corrupted by Western ideas and wants to overthrow Borno's government and impose Islamic Sharia Law.

But Professor Murtalal Muhibbu-Din, head of the Department of Religion at Lagos State University, believes that most of the sectarian crises, especially in northern Nigeria, are borne out of anger and frustration rather than religious faith.

Muhibbu-Din says that claims by the group that they were fighting against Western education and Western values were just smokescreens to vent their anger at government. He believes the attacks on the police and the police headquarters were carried out by Boko Haram because they perceived the police as a threat to their cause.