Ethno-Religious Sentiments And National Integration In Nigeria

This paper discusses ethno-religious sentiments and national integration in Nigeria. Today, Nigeria is characterized by deep cleavages along ethnic, religious and political lines. Political and ethnic imbalances exist among and between the various states or ethnic groups that make up Nigeria. These imbalances arose from the nature and character of the post colonial Nigeria State. Thus, the decision which was made by Nigerians prior to independence to become a Republic from Britain required that Nigerians will be integrated with one another for the purpose of peaceful coexistence, co-sharing of resources, co-administering and co-development of the nation. But this aim seems to be elusive since independence. What seems to linger so much is the crises of marginalization, promotion of personal and ethnic interests such as ethnic resource control; propagation of exclusive religious ideologies and the practice of sectional and tribal politics as can be seen in Nigeria today. Lack of adequate representation by the federating states in Nigeria constitutes the greatest threat to national integration and economic development. Hence, in view of the recent events encumbering the country, the need arose for academic perusal on the issue in order to suggest a sustainable solution, so as to checkmate the national disintegration that may be triggered through ethno-religious insurgence. Data for this work were aided through the application of primary and secondary methods of data collection. The findings revealed that inasmuch as ethno-religious sentiments fan the embers of disintegration it is also a veritable tool for national integration in Nigeria if properly harnessed. This research also recommends ethno-religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence amongst Nigerians