THE NIGERIAN STATE, DEPRIVATION AND DEMAND FOR RESOURCE CONTROL IN THE NIGER DELTA REGION

This paper examines the perceived deprivations in the Niger Delta that have led to the demand for resource control in the Niger Delta region. The study relies mainly on secondary sources for its analysis. There is a reliance on existing literature in books, journals, newspapers and magazines. The piece identifies and historicizes the reasons for the persistent agitations for self-determination and resource control in the Niger Delta. It finds that the demand for resource control has been necessitated by the neglect and deprivation suffered by the people of the region. It is this neglect and deprivation that have crystallized and metamorphosed into the current resource control conflict that threatens to dismember the Nigerian state. It concludes that the agitations in the region cannot be explained only in terms of environmental conflict. The neglect over the years suffered by the people in terms of provision of infrastructural facilities and their socio-political marginalization are crucial in explaining the frequent eruptions in the Niger Delta. Article visualizations