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INTRODUCTION
Nigeria as a nation is a place with people of diverse ethnic groups practicing different
religious faiths. Among the most prominent of these are the Muslims, the Christians and the
African traditional worshippers. Adherents of these religions in Nigeria interacts at the social
level as members of the same family, as members of the same political party, as business
associates, co-workers in the public and private sectors of the economy as well as in market
places and educational sector1 Yet on the other hand, when the same set of people relate to one
another at the corporate body to which the adherents owe allegiance; like the Mosque and the
Church where the adherents areindoctrinated on how to relate to the adherents ofthe opposite
faith, then their relationship is characterized by suspicion, hatred, envy, blackmail, unhealthy,
rivalry and incitement.2
These irreligious attitudes of devotees manifest itself in the incessant eruption of riots in
different parts of the country. Between 1980 and 1991 for example, Nigeria witnessed many
devastating religious disturbances involving Muslims and Christians like the Ilorin (1986)
incidence, where Christians in their procession/open air preaching reportedly made gestures and
insinuations which the Muslims found offensive. The result was destruction of lives and
properties. In 1987, a misunderstanding between the Muslim and Christian students of a higher
institution in Kafanchan, spread like wildfire to almost all the Northern states of Nigeria. And the
result was loss of lives and properties as well.
It is in this light that Enyioma, posits that Nigeria especially among African nations is
greatest victims of religion crisis because they are harbingers of all possible religions. Thus, this
paper aims at finding out the possible causes and solutions to religious conflicts in Nigeria.3In
actualizing this assignment, the research will first clarify the concept “Religion”, “conflict” and
“Religious Conflict” after which the researcher will establish in brief the various religions in
the Nigerian society and then move on to discuss the causes of their conflict and the possible
solutions in averting these conflicts.
1 Bidmos M.A, 2006. Inter-Religious Dialogue. Abuja: Panaf Press, 92 African Religion is not mentioned here because, most of the crisis in Nigeria are caused by the muslims and Christians.3 Eyioma Ohajanwa. S. 2013. Basics of peace and Conflict Resolutions, Owerri: Cinoyz Word Services, 112.
CLARIFICATION OF CONCEPTS
RELIGION: This term has no universally accepted definition but for the sake of this work,
Religion include the Salvation of mankind, creating a link between man and God, and ultimately
the maintenance of peace and unity among men for the service of God.Sociologist sees it as a
system of beliefs and practices by which a group of people struggle with the ultimate problems
of human life. It is considered by them as the refusal to surrender to death, to give up in the face
of frustration. The sociologist submission is that religion is a mechanism of adjustment for the
departed in the society4
CONFLICT: The term “Conflict” is originally derived from the Latin verb “Confligere” meaning to clash, engage in a conflict or strike together.5By definition, Wright sees conflict as an opposition among social entities against each other, Kreisberg also defines conflict situation as a relationship between two or more parties who feel they have incompatible goals6. In essence conflict refers to a confrontation between individuals or groups, resulting from opposite or incompatible end or means.
RELIGIOUS CONFLICT: from the foregoing, it can be deduced that Religions Conflict
therefore refers to the confrontation between individuals of different religious groups, resulting
from opposite or incompatible religious or means.
VARIOUS RELIGIONS IN NIGERIAN ENVIROMENT
A. ISLAM: This religion was founded by Prophet Mohammed from the Arabian Peninsula,
precisely Mecca around the 6th century A.D. They belief in the submission and will of Allah.
They are associated with this quote “there is no God but Allah and Mohammed is his prophet
and messenger”.7 The religion has fivemajor beliefs known as the five (5) pillars of Islam, they
include ;
(i) Belief in Allah: here they belief in Allah’s existence, his unity and perfection.
4 Ojebode P.A and Ajayi B.B. 2012. Introduction to the Study of Religions. Oyo: Omo-oje Publishers, 2.5 Albert I.O, 2001, Introduction to third Party Intervention in Community Conflicts, Ibadan: John Archer’s Pub. Ltd,1.6 Ibid.7 Albert I.O 2001 Introduction to Third Party Intervention in Community conflicts, Ibadan: John Archer’s pub. Ltd,1
(ii) Belief in Angels: the Quran describes Angels as supernatural and states that such is their real
nature that they do not appear in the material world generally, but only by divine command. (iii)
Belief in the scriptures: here, Islam calls upon mankind to believe in all the scriptures which
have been revealed through God’s messengers e.g. the Quran revealed to Mohammed, the Torah
revealed to Moses, the Injil, revealed to Jesse, the Zabur revealed to David and the Scrolls
revealed to Abraham
(iv). Belief in the last day: the last day is described in the Quran as the day of resurrection, the
Day of Judgment, and hereafter. It is life after death.
(v) Prayer: In prayer, the Muslim thinks of his Lord five times a day, appearing before his Lord
repeatedly and saluting his name within his heart and soul. The Muslim, in prayer, submits
himself to God and then looks forward to his favor.
(vi). Zakat (Religious tax): here, it is a fiscal worship by which Islam requires the well to do
care for the needs of the poor and to pay a subsidy to maintain public benefits like hospital,
educational institutions and defense force.
(vii) Fasting: it is a means by which the Muslims voluntarily abandon certain legitimate
frivolous enjoyment as a means of putting his soul to test and promoting his capacity for
perseverance, thus strengthening his will to keep away from sin, both obvious and obscure.
(viii) Pilgrimage: This is where Islam belief that a core adherent of the faith should visit mecca
atleast once in his lifetime8.
Islam was introduced into Northern Nigeria by North Africa traders (who had already acquired
it) in the 14th century and since then; Islam has spread into the middle belt region across Kogi,
Nassarawa and into the South Western States . It’s no doubt that Islam constitutes one-third of
the country’s population.
B. CHRISTIANITY
The history of Christianity concerns the Christian religion and the church from the
ministry of Jesus and His twelve apostles and the great commission to contemporary times and
8 Afella Terna, 2010. Introduction to World Religions. Makurdi: Obeta Printing and Pub, co. 58.
denominations. The vast majority of Christians believe in a triune God, consisting of three
unified and distinct persons; God the father, God the son and the Holy Spirit.9
Christianity began in 1st century AD in Jerusalem, from there the religion spread in the
Greek/Roman world beyond. It first started by the apostolic church, after the ascension of Christ
to heaven where the community led by Jesus apostles and His relatives. According to the great
commission, the resurrected Jesus commanded the disciples to spread His teachings all over the
world. The first Christians were essentially all ethnically Jewish. The doctrines of the apostles
brought the early church into conflict with some Jewish religious authorities. This eventually led
to their expulsion from the synagogues, thus Christianity acquired an identity distinct from
Rabbinic Judaism.10
In Christian teachings, Jesus Christ is believed to have been vindicated and glorified by
God through his resurrection from the dead, after three years of entombment. It is strongly
believed that his resurrection is the divine proof of his divinity that conferred on him, the power
of forgiveness of sins. After his resurrection, he appeared on many occasions to his disciples in
various locations. After forty days on earth, he ascended into heaven and was believed to have
been seated at the right hand of God. From his throne, he has continued to support and direct his
followers till today. In the great commission (Matt 18:18-20) the risen Jesus gave his disciples
direction, to extend his gospels beyond Samaria and Judea to all nations11
This is the foundation of Christianity’s national enterprise from Jerusalem to Samaria to
Asia Minor (modern Turkey) and to most of the Mediterranean coastal region. Christianity
arrived much later in Nigeria in 1842, when the first batch of Christians landed in Badagary.
Many more religious faiths followed suit, with some denominations evolving from existing ones.
c) AFRICAN TRADITIONAL RELIGION: When we talk of African traditional religion, we
mean the indigenous religious beliefs and practices of the Africans. Although the African
continent is comprised of multitudes of Nations who have complex cultures, innumerable
languages and myriads of dialects, there are still basic similarities in their religious systems.
9 Ajiki Pius. 2014. Understanding World Religions. Makurdi: Obeta Print. and Pub, co, 25.10 Ojebode P.A and Ajayi B.B, 2012. Introduction to the Study of Religions, Oyo: Omo-oje Publishers, 123.11 D.T.Nnong, 2012. Christianity in Africa. In E.K. Bongmba (ed), The Willey-Blackwell Companion to African Religions, Oxford, Blackwell, 208-219.
Everywhere, there is the concept of God (called by different names). There is also the concept of
“divinities and spirits” as well as belief in ancestral cults.12
The religion is based mainly on oral transmission. It is not written on paper but in people’s
hearts, minds, oral history, rituals, shrines and religious functions. It has no founders or
reformers like Christ, Mohammed, Gautama the Buddha. It is not the religion of one hero. It has
no missionaries or even the desire to propagate the religion or to proselytize. However,
theadherents are loyal worshippers.13Here, the religion is not alien to the Nigerian people because
it was practiced by their forefathers. The next section goes on to discuss the main topic which
is”Religious Conflict in Nigeria”.
RELIGIOUS CONFLICT IN NIGERIA
Religious conflict in Nigeria are to be viewed in two perspectives; Firstly is the intra-
religious conflict and second, the inter-religious conflict. The former deals with conflicts within
religions,where there are denominations and factions that may not view themselves as part of a
broader whole14. In Islam for instance; there are situations in Nigeria where the core Hausa
Muslims in the North, do not see the Yoruba Muslims in the South West as practicing the pure
Islamic tenents and as such, do not see them as brothers or sisters of the same faith. So in case of
any riot, the Hausa Muslims would even go against the Yoruba Muslims as enemies. In another
Instance in the Northeast, by the fall of 2014 for example, at least nine emirs had fled, often to
Abuja rather than face the violence of Boko Haram15- Their own Islamic terrorist group.16
Christianity, on the other hand, like; the crisis in the Assemblies of God’s Church
Nigeria, in the year 2014, involving members of two camps; Rev. Paul Emeka on one hand and
Rev. Chidi Okoroafor on the other hand,clashed leaving some people wounded, and others even
killed. The crisis occured as a result of the suspension of the Assemblies of God’s Church
general superintendent; Rev. Paul Emeka and the installation of Chidi Okoroafor as the New
12J.S Mbiti, 1969. African Religions and Philosophy, Heinemann, 1. 13 Awolalu J.O. 1975. What is African Tradition Religion? In Studies in Comparative Religion, Vol.9 No.1 World Wisdom Inc.14 Linda M.W and Michael R.H, (ND) Intra-religious hate and Violence: A psychological model. Webster University, journal of hate studies, 315 Boko Harram is an Islamic extremist terrorist group based in North Eastern Nigeria, also active in Chad, Niger,and Northern Cameroon.(see Boko Harram. Wikipedia.http//:www.en.m.wikipedia.org/book haram. Retrieved on 20th-07-2017).16 John Paden, Religion and Conflict in Nigeria countdown to the 2015 election. United States institute of peace www.usp.org. Retrieved 29-05-2017.
superintendent.17Also, the CAN (Christian Association of Nigeria), an umbrella organization
comprising of the Christian Council of Nigeria, the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, the
Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, the evangelical Fellowships of West Africa, and Organization
of African instituted churches had an internal conflict; where the Roman Catholics suspended
their membership in CAN on the grounds that it’s Pentecostal leaders are too closely associated
with government of President Goodluck Jonathan.
On the other hand, the latter, which is “Inter-religiousConflict”, is the aggressive
behavior between “in groups and out-groups”. Two examples of such conflicts in Nigeria
include; the Gwantu crisis of Nov. 02-2001, where a clash started on a political ground over the
relocation of the LG headquarters, later look on ethno -religious dimension, in which places of
worship were destroyed. Another is the Yelwa Shendam Mayhem in plateau state on Saturday,
June 01-2002. Here; a religious cum ethnic fracas between the native people (predominantly)
Christians and Hausa setters (predominantly Muslims). This violence extends to about four local
government councils in Southern Plateau.
Finally the Kano mayhem of Wednesday, May 12-2014 followingthe Yelwa Shendem
ethnic religious crisis in Plateau, Non-Muslims were attacked in reprisal of the Plateau crisis.
Over 200 lives were lost and the traditional ruler of the area deposed.18 It is also on point that
most of these crises do take a political stand first and later aggravate to religious crisis resulting
in the killings of lives and destruction of properties. The next section goes on to discuss the
possible causes of these crises.
CAUSES OF RELIGIOUS CRISIS IN NIGERIA
There are many factors responsible for the causes of religious crisis in Nigeria. They range
from political, religious, social, educational as well as economic. Below is a brief explanation of
the foregoing points;
A) Political factor: Causes of religious conflict here include; the pluralistic nature of nation-
states, government patronization of religious activities and the Non respect of secular status
of the states by governments. Judging from the first point, John Paden observes that Nigeria
is not only the largest half Muslim, half Christian country by far but also ranked as the most 17 Naija.com newspaper “Assemblies of God Church” crisis worsens as members clash in Enugu. Retrieved 29-may-2017.18 News watch Margarine, 2009, Nov.2, Vol.50 No.18, 10-21.
religious, with between three hundred and four hundred ethno-linguistic groups. It is as well,
one of the most complexes through three identities make-up two-thirds of the population:
Hausa-Fulani at 30%, Yoruba 20%, Igbo 17%. He further noted that since independence in
1960, Nigeria has witnessed its share of conflict, including the 1967-70 civil wars; when the
southeast tried to secede as Biafra. The numerous coups and attempted coups have often had
a regional/ethno-religious flavor. Since the return to civilian rule, insurgencies have flared
up in the South-South and the Northern States. Post-election violence was serious in Kaduna
in 2011 and the middle belt, harder-farmer violence continues.19
Moreover, when any government in Nigeria which is supposed to operate based on the
principles of a secular state turns to patronize religious activities, there is bound to be crisis. It is
in this vein that Yusuf MO opines that; Nigeria is said to be a secular state but unlike any
election in Nigeria history, the 2015 election assumed religious dimensions as evidenced in
presidential action like; the 2011 Redeemed Christian Church of God(RCCG) visit, presidential
pilgrimage, Arms importation from South Africa, using the CAN chairman’s private jet,
organized visits to Churches in Lagos, Abuja and other cities, provision of financial
inducements for Christian groups among others. According to him the president’s actions sends
a profound message that, he got in to power through the support of the Christians alone; and this
of course made the Muslim brothers during the 2015 elections to also vote a candidate from
their faith and even threatened that should he loose, the nation would be set ablaze.20
Finally, the inability of the various Nigerian governments overtime, to respect the secular status
of the Nigerian state also threw the nation in a religious conflict. For instance, governments
sponsorships of religions pilgrimages, granting of public holidays for religious festivals and
entrenchment of sharia laws into the secular constitutions, where the launching of the sharia
systems by some states in Nigeria triggered several religious violent hostilities that set the nation
back. While the Nigeria’s registration as full member of organization of Islamic community
(OIC) in 1986 was the last strand that broke the camel’s back as this provoked envy, suspicion,
arrogance and condemnation from religious camps all over Nigeria and beyond.21
B) ReligiousFactor.
19 John Paden, Religion and Conflict in Nigeria Countdown to the 2015 Election. United States Institute of Peace www.usp.org. Retrieved 29-05-2017.20 Yusuf Mudasisu Olalere.(ND) Muslims and Contemporary Nigerian Politics, Department of Educational Technology, University of Ilorin.15.21 Eyioma Ohajanwa. S. 2013. Basics of peace and Conflict Resolutions, Owerri: Cinoyz Word Services, 121.
This includes; wrong religious orientation, undue fundamentalism and fanaticism, religious
chauvinism and bigotry or sexism. As earlier mentioned in the introduction, wrong religious
orientation arise when at the corporate level, where adherents of various faiths that owe
allegiance, are indoctrinated by the Mosque or Church on how to relate with adherents of the
opposite faith. Then, their relationship is characterized by suspicion, hatred, envy, blackmail,
unhealthy, rivalry and incitements; a good example of such indoctrination is the Boko haram
insurgency operating especially in the North Eastern part of the country. The group has caused
havoc in Africa’s most populous country through a wave of bombings, assassinations and
abductions22. This is due to the wrong indoctrination by some Imams in Islam, which are
supposed to defend the course of Islam as the religion of peace.
Fundamentalism and fanaticism by adherents of various religious faiths is also a major cause
of religious conflict in Nigeria, the earlier stated example of how an incidence occurred in Ilorin
(1986), where Christians in their procession/open air preaching reportedly made gestures and
insinuations which the Muslims found offensive, the result was the destruction of lives and
properties. Others are the chauvinist attitude exhibited Muslims that Muhammed is the last and
seal of all prophets. While Christians on the other hand also exhibit certain chauvinist tendencies
too, when they assert that; Jesus is the only way to salvation. As such, these disparities bring
about religious conflict.
C) Social Factor
Issues bringing about religious conflict here ranges from the social media, intolerant of
ethnic diversities and external or foreign influences. The traditional function of the press in any
society is to inform, entertain and educate. They also have a code of conduct that governs their
practice. However, experience have shown especially in Nigeria that the mass media reports,
news analysis and feature are capable of playing a negative role in the relationship between
Muslims and Christians, depending on the intention of the journalist concerned; for example;
Kālu, O.U notes that, in 1979-83 during the Shagari’s regime,a press report alleged that Muslims
had been given 10 million naira by the federal government to build a Central Mosque in Abuja,
the new federal capital. The gesture was considered to favor the Muslims and contempt for or
neglect of the Christians. Even the prompt intervention of the government to explain the matter
22Boko haram. En. M. Wikipedia. Org/wiki/book haram Retrieved 31-05-2017.
could not help the situation. But the truth was that both the Christians and the Muslims were 10
million naira each.23
Also, the role of the press in 1987 Kafachan incident was certainly not in the best interest of
peaceful co-existence between Muslims and Christians. The dailies, radio and television program
devoted their front page headlines editorial comments and features to the reactions of the
Muslims in Kano, Kaduna and Zaria, whereas what happened in those places represented the
reaction to the original action of the killing of Muslim students and the burning of their mosque
in Kafachan July6-7, 1987. Members of the public were grossly misinformed by the press as they
were fed with partial reports. Subsequently, Muslims and Christians were at each other’s throat.24
Speaking on intolerance of ethnic diversities and foreign influences, as a cause of
religiousconflicts in Nigeria, Ikechukwu highlights that; the indirect rule administration in
Nigeria by Lord Frederick Lugard was inappropriate decision making tool, for managing tribal
tensions and hatred in the colony. That the system not only reenergized ethnic divisions, it also
complicated the task of welding diverse elements into a Nigerian nation.25 And since ethnicity
and religion in Nigeria cannot be separated the Hausa/Fulani Muslim in the north and the Igbo
Christians in the east as well as the Yoruba Christians and Muslims in the west are always at
loggerhead with each other the nation economic and political gains emanating from a religious
interest. Even the structure of the Nigerian nation state was actually built on Christian values as a
result of British colonialism and so this historical fact brings about tension between those trying
to establish a nation where all ethnic/religious groups are equally treated.
23 kalu O.U. (ed), 1976. Religions; A Journal of the Nigerian Association of the Study of Religions, Nsukka; Dept. of Religion. Uni. Of Nigeria.24 Erivwo S.U. 1976, The Study of Religion as an Academic Disciple in Religions vol.1, Dec.1976, 7-20. 25 Ikechukwu, 2012. A historical Survey of ethnic Conflict in Nigeria. Asian Social Science, vol.8, No 4, 1.
D) Educational Factor: The underlying issues here is the poor religious academic curriculum
by the federal government, that is why as mentioned earlier there was a misunderstanding
between the Muslim and Christian students in 1987 in Kafanchan that resulted to the destruction
of lives and properties. If not of recent that efforts have been made to bring about balanced
Islamic and Christian courses to ward off tension of religious conflict, there has been serious
suspicion of imbalanced religious courses in the Nigerian educational curriculum.
E) ECONOMIC FACTOR: Financial and leadership tussle, establishment of religious
institutions for profit making, poverty, greed and grievance are the major issues that bring about
religious conflict here. This factor deals more with Intra-religious conflict. It is the type of
conflict occurring within religious groups of the same faith. The case of financial and leadership
tussle is the salient point that socked the Assemblies of God’s Church back in 2014 as earlier
mentioned, where the then General Superintended of the Assemblies of God Church in person of
Paul Emeka refused to vacate his seat of leadership for the newly elected Chidi Okoroafor. The
former out of desperation to hold unto leadership at all cost took the church to the court of law.
This incidence resulted to the destruction of lives and properties. Others are the recent sudden
establishments of religious institutions for profit making. It’s on record that due to economic
reasons many pastors do involve in financial tussle with their church leadership, as such break
away from their new churches. That is the more reason why most of the sermons revolve around
prosperity26
Finally, Jos capital city of Plateau state Nigeria has experienced spates of sporadic violent
conflicts since 1994. The research findings revealed that although the conflicts in Jos are largely
struggles over economic and political control of Jos. between the Hausa-Fulani settles,
predominantly Muslims, and the indigenous Afizere, Anaguta and Besom, predominantly
Christians, religions ethnic labels are used to manipulate, organize and control conflicting
parties. These have pitched Christians and Muslims against each other. The conflict has had
devastating effects on inter-group relationship.27 Thenext section attempts to briefly discuss the
possible ways of solving religious conflicts in Nigeria.
26 Peterf, 1997.The Growth of the Church in Africa, Jos: CAPRO media services Pub. Division, 452 27 Kassan Basil Fukshiwe, 2010. The causes of Violent Inter-religious Conflict and its Effects on Residential Relationships in Jos, Plateau States, Nigeria. http://kimmagedsc.i.e/ dissertation or inter-religious conflict/retrieved 30-05-2017.
SOLUTION TO RELIGIOUS CONFLICT IN NIGERIA.
The following areas have relevant roles to play in the efforts to overcoming religious conflict
within Nigeria, they include:
A. The Educational Institutions
Bidmos M.A suggest that in all tertiary institutions where religious studies areoffered as an
academic discipline, cross fertilization should be instituted. This is a situation where a student
offering Christian studies as his major would have to offersome courses in Islamic studies and
those who major in Islamic studiesalso offer some courses in Christian studies. With such an
exposure, parochialism and narrow mindedness, which breed misperception and
misinterpretation among youths, could be nipped in the bud. Cross fertilization in terms of course
offerings in religious studies is a potent instrument of engendering tolerance . 28 Moreover, a
close supervising by education curriculum planners and astute supervising councils need to be
put in place, where they would visit schools at intervals to assess and appraise developments in
this direction. Seminars and workshops should be regularly conducted for schools and
theological institutions on inter-religious peace education29
B. The family
Parents have a duty to begin to train their children early in life. Thus children should be made
to understand cultural, religion, ethnic and common pluralistic diversity of the Nigerian states.
They should be made to realize that we all are simply ‘victims of religious faith’ considering that
almost everybodywill become a member of one religion or the other by circumstances of birth
and environment. For instances, a child born to the Hausa/Fulani parents and raised by them in a
Muslim environment is most likely to become a Muslim naturally.Children should therefore,
learn to be tolerant and respectful of values of other religious faiths. They should be encouraged
to remove discriminations and prerogative perceptions such as stereo-typing and unhealthy
competitions over religious values and memberships.
C. The Government:
28 Bidmos M.A, 2006. Inter-Religious Dialogue. Abuja: Panaf Press, 118.29 Eyioma Ohajanwa. S. 2013. Basics of peace and Conflict Resolutions, Owerri: Cinoyz Word Services, 120.
Looking at what we have discussed so far, it’s obvious that the government has contributed to
religious crisis due to their compromise with the values and principles of a secular state like
Nigeria. As such the government should no longer tamper with the secular state of the nation.
Involvement of the government in certain religious activities like sponsorships of religious
pilgrims, granting of public holidays for religious festivals, and entrenchment of sharia laws into
secular constitutions are sharp breaches of the same constitutional provisions should all be
refrained from by the government in order to preserve pure secular schemes.
D. Individual And Corporate Efforts:
Certain individuals especially, the prominent ones, should adopt various methods such as
their teaching methods, syllabus design and public lectures. They should design many programs
that would bring Muslims and Christians to face-to-face discussions on several occasions. Some
individuals like Professor Ismail Balogun, formerly of the University of Ilorin are already
involved in some of the suggestions mentioned above, yet there is need for more.30
Corporate bodies should also be formed to address the issues of religious conflicts in a pluralistic
society like Nigeria, already some bodies have already been in places like; the Islamic Study
Group of Nigeria (ISGON), organized by Professor Abdul Kareem Hussein. The group does not
address itself exclusively to the Muslims and Christians. For example, in 1983, the group
organized a national seminar to which Christians were invited as co-participants to examine the
menace of alcohol which was and still is threatening the stability of the Nigerian society.31
E. The Need For Dialogue
Dialogue especially in the Inter-religious perspective is about people of different faiths
coming to a mutual understanding and respect that allows them to live and corporate with each
other in in spite of their differences.Inter-faith Dialogue is not just words or talk. It includes
practical human interaction and relationships. Dialogue seeks to increase mutual understanding
and good relations. It identify causes of tension in Christian Muslim relations for instance and
30 Balogun I. A.B, 1978. Religious Understanding and Corporation in Nig. Ilorin. see also this Inaugural Lecture entitled: Utilizing Religions for Peaceful, Unity and Progress in Nigeria, University of Ilorin January-22-1981.31 The Resolutions. This was adopted at the first national symposium on Alcohol and national development, held at the Arts Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos, Nigeria on Sat. 10th Sha-aban 1403 (21st o9f May, 1983), organized by the Islamic Study of Nigeria, Lagos.
help to build understanding and confidence to overcome or prevent the identified tensions.
Finally it breaks down the barriers and stereotypes which lead to distrust, suspicion and bigotry32.
Thus certain sincere religious leaders, individuals, and corporate bodies should come up with
strong ecumenical programs in centers that would help curtail violence amongst our various
religious faiths in the country.
CONCLUSION
Nigeria overtime has been under heavy conflict, majority rooted in religion. And
Christianity and Islam are no doubt being the two religions battling each other, whereas the
indigenous African traditional worshippers appearto be more accommodating. It is against this
backdropthat the paper under took to unravel the causes of religious conflicts in Nigeria and also
suggests possible solutions to them. These causes were identified to be based on political factors,
religious factors, and Social factors, educational as well as economic factors. Meanwhile, the
researcher wishes to reiterate this point that sometimes, “Religious conflict” is just an artificial
problem, created by selfish leaders for their own personal interest. Just like the Emir of Kano
would say that;
...There are two major tribes in Nigeria; the Elites and the masses. Once you make lots of money, you belong to the Elite tribe. When you are a commoner, suffering, you belong to the tribe of the masses. If you are elite and you need more power, or elective position, you sow seeds of tribalism and religion among the masses, so as to sway their emotions for your personal victory. This happens both at the national and state level. Unfortunately, after the election, when they have won and joined the “sworn enemies” to drink and party, the gullible masses continue to fight each other. Even smart people, who belong to the masses, sometimes will sow seeds of tribalism and religion among the masses, and then the masses would carry them up until they belong to the elite class. It is a classic strategy used over 3000 years ago in the art of war. A commoner, who aspires to sit with the elites, could stir up powerful tribal or religious sentiments, such wave if properly utilized either by shedding blood or destabilizing the elites, carries the commoner to the elite class. But once there, he immediately mingles and makes peace with the elite tribe, and turn his back on the same masses that helped him get there…..33
Deducing from what the Emir is saying, he is simply implying that left alone the struggle
for power, wealth and fame by our greedy leaders, who use religion especially as a yardstick to
play on the emotions of people in order to get their selfish ambition accomplished at all cost,
32Gerard Forde, M. A, 2013, A Journey Together, Ireland : Cois Tine, 7-8.33 Emir Sanusi Bares his Mind on Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba. The Problem of Nigeria. A speech delivered During of Sir. Olaniwun Ajayi ‘s Book Lunch at Muson Centre. https//:www.nairaland.com/emir-sanusi-speech. Retrieved 20th-07-2017.
religion would never have been a source of conflict in Nigeria. That is partly true among other
factors already discussed. I therefore suggest that, for there to be religious harmony in the
country, the masses must not allow themselves to be used as instruments of political violence,
under the disguise of religious conflict. The educational sector, the family sector, the government
as well as the individuals and co-operate bodies, all have a role to play.That brings my
summation on this topic to a close.
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