Benjamin Maiangwa
Biographic Data
| ID | 100766 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Benjamin Maiangwa |
| GIVEN NAMES | Benjamin |
| FAMILY NAME | Maiangwa |
| SIGNATURE | MAIANGWA B |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Manitoba |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6002-4184 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 18 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 48 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 17 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 1 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2013 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Being and Becoming “African” in the Postcolony
The Paradox(es) of Diasporic Identity, Race and Belonging
The banality of infrastructural racism through the lens of peace and conflict studies
The Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS) discipline has advanced critical analysis of armed conflict, ethnic violence, and peacebuilding, yet remains marginally silent on racism/racialisation as a form of violence. Consequently, we employ in this article the notions of ‘structure’ and ‘infrastructure’ to bring the multiple layers of racism to PACS attention. The structure, as we conceive it, are the tangibles of racism, manifested, performed, and en…
Against memory-as-remedy to the traumatic aftermaths of Nigeria-Biafra war past: Whither Justice
This article examines recent scholarship proposing the use of memory practice to remedy the traumatic aftermaths of Nigeria-Biafra War past. The assumption sustained in this scholarship is that through certain cultural memory practices such as truth commissions and commemorative rituals some form of appeasement might be reached regarding the extent of subsistence of that traumatic past. We fault these scholarly claims proposing memory as panacea …
Weak State”, Regional Power, Global Player: Nigeria and the Response to Boko Haram
Much of the literature explaining Nigeria’s failure to counter the Boko Haram insurgency since 2009 has focused on the country’s internal governance, drawing on variations of the “weak state” concept. In this article, we argue that analysts also need to examine Nigeria’s international relations for a more critical explanation of why it took over five years to eventually halt the violent group’s territorial expansion and regular commission of atro…
The Nation as Corporation: British Colonialism and the Pitfalls of Postcolonial Nationhood in Nigeria
This article re-examines the British colonial policy of indirect rule in Nigeria. Moving away from extant scholarly attention on this colonial policy that focuses on governance through local or native authorities, we focus rather on British colonial rule through imperial companies. We argue that the British colonist did not conceive of or organize "Nigeria" as a "nation", rather it was administered as a business enterprise in which the Crown depe…
Conflicting Indigeneity” and Farmer–Herder Conflicts in Postcolonial Africa
Post-colonial wars and conflicts in Africa have mostly converged around identity issues. They manifest in cases of ethnic mobilization, cultural othering, and internal oppression of people simply s
Perspectives on “New” Conflicts in Africa
When it comes to conflicts, in this instance, protracted sociopolitical conflicts, Africa is a constant case study. Some scholars such as Scott Straus, however, contend that African wars are ending
Has the Giant gone to sleep? Re-assessing Nigeria’s response to the Liberian Civil War (1990–1997) and the Boko Haram insurgency (2009–2015)
This article undertakes a retrospective appraisal of Nigeria's widely acclaimed, yet contentious, success in its interventionist role in Liberia and its seeming inability to contain the threats posed by members of the dreaded Islamist militant: Jamaa'tu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati Wal Jihad/al-Wilāyat al-Islāmiyya Gharb Afrīqiyyah, also known as Boko Haram. Drawing references from scholarly articles, electronic channels, and other commissioned report…
The ‘Quasi-Permanent Crisis: Understanding Collective Rebellion and Sectarian Violence in the CAR
This paper is a critical application of Ted Gurr’s theory of political rebellion to understanding the dynamics of the long history of socio-economic and political crises in the Central African Republic (CAR). Gurr locates his explanation for political rebellion in people’s ‘shared grievances’, ‘discontentment’, and ‘group mobilisation’ within the context of repressive state actions. Gurr, however, gives no real explanation as to what kind of peop…
Nigeria and the ‘making’ of combative identities
The contemporary Nigerian state continues to be entrapped by a ferocious web of identity politics. Since ethno-religious fault lines were created and empowered by the colonial project, and despite the utilization of various socio-historical and political arrangements in post-independence Nigeria, the country is still cast under the shadows of the intransigencies associated with combative identity crisis. This article brings a fresh perspective on…
Liberal Peace Intervention in the Central African Republic: Limitations and Reworking a “Hybrid” Order
This article uses Roger Mac Ginty’s four-part model of hybridity as a conceptual paradigm to reconsider the relative failure of the liberal peace intervention as a model of building peace in the Central African Republic. The article argues that the limited success of the liberal peace intervention in the Central African Republic is due to its strict adherence to internationalist, top-down, and exclusionary approaches. This, the article argues, ev…
Boko Haram's attacks and the people's response: A ‘fourth pillar’ of the responsibility to protect
This article examines the failure of the Nigerian government to exercise its responsibility to protect (R2P) populations from mass atrocities in the wake of Boko Haram's violent and persistent attacks against civilians in north-east Nigeria. After the abduction of 276 schoolgirls on 14 April 2014, the affected communities engaged directly in protecting their villages and families. Another murderous and devastating attack on Baga in January 2015 a…
Assessing the Responses of The Economic Community of West African States to the Recurring and Emerging Security Threats in West Africa
Since its formation in 1975, The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has attained a mixed-bag of accomplishments in the area of peace and security. Despite its modest gains in this area, the capacity of the organization has been constantly challenged by emerging and recurring security threats in the West African region. These include jihadist terrorism, drug trafficking and the unconstitutional changes of government. Informed by a …
Jihadism in West Africa: Adopting a Three-Dimensional Approach to Counterterrorism
This paper assesses the jihadist threat in Nigeria, Mali, and to a smaller extent in Cameroon, Niger, and Algeria. The paper argues that due to the risk of West Africa being infiltrated by jihadist groups, it is necessary to strengthen the counterterrorism capacity of the major regional players: the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of the West African States (ECOWAS), and enhance their collaboration with their foreign partners and ci…
West Africa’s Terrorist Challenge and the Dynamics of Regional Response
West Africa’s trajectory to democratisation and sustained socio-economic development has, since the end of the Cold War, been hamstrung by various forms of violence ranging from bloody civil wars, sectarian conflicts, coup d’états and secessionist insurgency. While some of these conflicts have to an extent been managed through the various interventions of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the region is still stifled by emerg…
Boko Haram, Religious Violence, and the Crisis of National Identity in Nigeria: Towards a Non-killing Approach
Since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999, more than 10,000 people have died in the wake of identity-based violence mostly fought along ethno-religious lines. In 2009, a radical Islamist sect from north-eastern Nigeria, Boko Haram, started a campaign of terror that has so far intensified the apprehensive religious atmosphere in the country. While the Boko Haram crisis cannot be said to be strictly religious, this article will locate the g…
Oil Multinational Corporations, Environmental Irresponsibility and Turbulent Peace in the Niger Delta
For many oil-bearing communities in petro-states around the world, the net effects of oil exploration have not only been devastating, but have also highlighted the double standards that are often applied by oil multinational corporations (MNCs). These organisations are far more likely to demand environmental and social mitigation efforts in the developed world than they are in a developing country. This paper seeks to demonstrate how the continue…
Conflicting Indigeneity” and Farmer–Herder Conflicts in Postcolonial Africa
Post-colonial wars and conflicts in Africa have mostly converged around identity issues. They manifest in cases of ethnic mobilization, cultural othering, and internal oppression of people simply s
Has the Giant gone to sleep? Re-assessing Nigeria’s response to the Liberian Civil War (1990–1997) and the Boko Haram insurgency (2009–2015)
This article undertakes a retrospective appraisal of Nigeria's widely acclaimed, yet contentious, success in its interventionist role in Liberia and its seeming inability to contain the threats posed by members of the dreaded Islamist militant: Jamaa'tu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati Wal Jihad/al-Wilāyat al-Islāmiyya Gharb Afrīqiyyah, also known as Boko Haram. Drawing references from scholarly articles, electronic channels, and other commissioned report…
Boko Haram's attacks and the people's response: A ‘fourth pillar’ of the responsibility to protect
This article examines the failure of the Nigerian government to exercise its responsibility to protect (R2P) populations from mass atrocities in the wake of Boko Haram's violent and persistent attacks against civilians in north-east Nigeria. After the abduction of 276 schoolgirls on 14 April 2014, the affected communities engaged directly in protecting their villages and families. Another murderous and devastating attack on Baga in January 2015 a…
The banality of infrastructural racism through the lens of peace and conflict studies
The Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS) discipline has advanced critical analysis of armed conflict, ethnic violence, and peacebuilding, yet remains marginally silent on racism/racialisation as a form of violence. Consequently, we employ in this article the notions of ‘structure’ and ‘infrastructure’ to bring the multiple layers of racism to PACS attention. The structure, as we conceive it, are the tangibles of racism, manifested, performed, and en…
Against memory-as-remedy to the traumatic aftermaths of Nigeria-Biafra war past: Whither Justice
This article examines recent scholarship proposing the use of memory practice to remedy the traumatic aftermaths of Nigeria-Biafra War past. The assumption sustained in this scholarship is that through certain cultural memory practices such as truth commissions and commemorative rituals some form of appeasement might be reached regarding the extent of subsistence of that traumatic past. We fault these scholarly claims proposing memory as panacea …
The Nation as Corporation: British Colonialism and the Pitfalls of Postcolonial Nationhood in Nigeria
This article re-examines the British colonial policy of indirect rule in Nigeria. Moving away from extant scholarly attention on this colonial policy that focuses on governance through local or native authorities, we focus rather on British colonial rule through imperial companies. We argue that the British colonist did not conceive of or organize "Nigeria" as a "nation", rather it was administered as a business enterprise in which the Crown depe…
Nigeria and the ‘making’ of combative identities
The contemporary Nigerian state continues to be entrapped by a ferocious web of identity politics. Since ethno-religious fault lines were created and empowered by the colonial project, and despite the utilization of various socio-historical and political arrangements in post-independence Nigeria, the country is still cast under the shadows of the intransigencies associated with combative identity crisis. This article brings a fresh perspective on…
The ‘Quasi-Permanent Crisis: Understanding Collective Rebellion and Sectarian Violence in the CAR
This paper is a critical application of Ted Gurr’s theory of political rebellion to understanding the dynamics of the long history of socio-economic and political crises in the Central African Republic (CAR). Gurr locates his explanation for political rebellion in people’s ‘shared grievances’, ‘discontentment’, and ‘group mobilisation’ within the context of repressive state actions. Gurr, however, gives no real explanation as to what kind of peop…
Assessing the Responses of The Economic Community of West African States to the Recurring and Emerging Security Threats in West Africa
Since its formation in 1975, The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has attained a mixed-bag of accomplishments in the area of peace and security. Despite its modest gains in this area, the capacity of the organization has been constantly challenged by emerging and recurring security threats in the West African region. These include jihadist terrorism, drug trafficking and the unconstitutional changes of government. Informed by a …
Jihadism in West Africa: Adopting a Three-Dimensional Approach to Counterterrorism
This paper assesses the jihadist threat in Nigeria, Mali, and to a smaller extent in Cameroon, Niger, and Algeria. The paper argues that due to the risk of West Africa being infiltrated by jihadist groups, it is necessary to strengthen the counterterrorism capacity of the major regional players: the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of the West African States (ECOWAS), and enhance their collaboration with their foreign partners and ci…
Boko Haram, Religious Violence, and the Crisis of National Identity in Nigeria: Towards a Non-killing Approach
Since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999, more than 10,000 people have died in the wake of identity-based violence mostly fought along ethno-religious lines. In 2009, a radical Islamist sect from north-eastern Nigeria, Boko Haram, started a campaign of terror that has so far intensified the apprehensive religious atmosphere in the country. While the Boko Haram crisis cannot be said to be strictly religious, this article will locate the g…
Oil Multinational Corporations, Environmental Irresponsibility and Turbulent Peace in the Niger Delta
For many oil-bearing communities in petro-states around the world, the net effects of oil exploration have not only been devastating, but have also highlighted the double standards that are often applied by oil multinational corporations (MNCs). These organisations are far more likely to demand environmental and social mitigation efforts in the developed world than they are in a developing country. This paper seeks to demonstrate how the continue…
West Africa’s Terrorist Challenge and the Dynamics of Regional Response
West Africa’s trajectory to democratisation and sustained socio-economic development has, since the end of the Cold War, been hamstrung by various forms of violence ranging from bloody civil wars, sectarian conflicts, coup d’états and secessionist insurgency. While some of these conflicts have to an extent been managed through the various interventions of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the region is still stifled by emerg…
Boko Haram, Religious Violence, and the Crisis of National Identity in Nigeria: Towards a Non-killing Approach
Since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999, more than 10,000 people have died in the wake of identity-based violence mostly fought along ethno-religious lines. In 2009, a radical Islamist sect from north-eastern Nigeria, Boko Haram, started a campaign of terror that has so far intensified the apprehensive religious atmosphere in the country. While the Boko Haram crisis cannot be said to be strictly religious, this article will locate the g…
Oil Multinational Corporations, Environmental Irresponsibility and Turbulent Peace in the Niger Delta
For many oil-bearing communities in petro-states around the world, the net effects of oil exploration have not only been devastating, but have also highlighted the double standards that are often applied by oil multinational corporations (MNCs). These organisations are far more likely to demand environmental and social mitigation efforts in the developed world than they are in a developing country. This paper seeks to demonstrate how the continue…
Jihadism in West Africa: Adopting a Three-Dimensional Approach to Counterterrorism
This paper assesses the jihadist threat in Nigeria, Mali, and to a smaller extent in Cameroon, Niger, and Algeria. The paper argues that due to the risk of West Africa being infiltrated by jihadist groups, it is necessary to strengthen the counterterrorism capacity of the major regional players: the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of the West African States (ECOWAS), and enhance their collaboration with their foreign partners and ci…
Assessing the Responses of The Economic Community of West African States to the Recurring and Emerging Security Threats in West Africa
Since its formation in 1975, The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has attained a mixed-bag of accomplishments in the area of peace and security. Despite its modest gains in this area, the capacity of the organization has been constantly challenged by emerging and recurring security threats in the West African region. These include jihadist terrorism, drug trafficking and the unconstitutional changes of government. Informed by a …
Liberal Peace Intervention in the Central African Republic: Limitations and Reworking a “Hybrid” Order
This article uses Roger Mac Ginty’s four-part model of hybridity as a conceptual paradigm to reconsider the relative failure of the liberal peace intervention as a model of building peace in the Central African Republic. The article argues that the limited success of the liberal peace intervention in the Central African Republic is due to its strict adherence to internationalist, top-down, and exclusionary approaches. This, the article argues, ev…
Boko Haram's attacks and the people's response: A ‘fourth pillar’ of the responsibility to protect
This article examines the failure of the Nigerian government to exercise its responsibility to protect (R2P) populations from mass atrocities in the wake of Boko Haram's violent and persistent attacks against civilians in north-east Nigeria. After the abduction of 276 schoolgirls on 14 April 2014, the affected communities engaged directly in protecting their villages and families. Another murderous and devastating attack on Baga in January 2015 a…
Conflicting Indigeneity” and Farmer–Herder Conflicts in Postcolonial Africa
Post-colonial wars and conflicts in Africa have mostly converged around identity issues. They manifest in cases of ethnic mobilization, cultural othering, and internal oppression of people simply s
Perspectives on “New” Conflicts in Africa
When it comes to conflicts, in this instance, protracted sociopolitical conflicts, Africa is a constant case study. Some scholars such as Scott Straus, however, contend that African wars are ending
Has the Giant gone to sleep? Re-assessing Nigeria’s response to the Liberian Civil War (1990–1997) and the Boko Haram insurgency (2009–2015)
This article undertakes a retrospective appraisal of Nigeria's widely acclaimed, yet contentious, success in its interventionist role in Liberia and its seeming inability to contain the threats posed by members of the dreaded Islamist militant: Jamaa'tu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati Wal Jihad/al-Wilāyat al-Islāmiyya Gharb Afrīqiyyah, also known as Boko Haram. Drawing references from scholarly articles, electronic channels, and other commissioned report…
The ‘Quasi-Permanent Crisis: Understanding Collective Rebellion and Sectarian Violence in the CAR
This paper is a critical application of Ted Gurr’s theory of political rebellion to understanding the dynamics of the long history of socio-economic and political crises in the Central African Republic (CAR). Gurr locates his explanation for political rebellion in people’s ‘shared grievances’, ‘discontentment’, and ‘group mobilisation’ within the context of repressive state actions. Gurr, however, gives no real explanation as to what kind of peop…
Nigeria and the ‘making’ of combative identities
The contemporary Nigerian state continues to be entrapped by a ferocious web of identity politics. Since ethno-religious fault lines were created and empowered by the colonial project, and despite the utilization of various socio-historical and political arrangements in post-independence Nigeria, the country is still cast under the shadows of the intransigencies associated with combative identity crisis. This article brings a fresh perspective on…
The Nation as Corporation: British Colonialism and the Pitfalls of Postcolonial Nationhood in Nigeria
This article re-examines the British colonial policy of indirect rule in Nigeria. Moving away from extant scholarly attention on this colonial policy that focuses on governance through local or native authorities, we focus rather on British colonial rule through imperial companies. We argue that the British colonist did not conceive of or organize "Nigeria" as a "nation", rather it was administered as a business enterprise in which the Crown depe…
Weak State”, Regional Power, Global Player: Nigeria and the Response to Boko Haram
Much of the literature explaining Nigeria’s failure to counter the Boko Haram insurgency since 2009 has focused on the country’s internal governance, drawing on variations of the “weak state” concept. In this article, we argue that analysts also need to examine Nigeria’s international relations for a more critical explanation of why it took over five years to eventually halt the violent group’s territorial expansion and regular commission of atro…
Against memory-as-remedy to the traumatic aftermaths of Nigeria-Biafra war past: Whither Justice
This article examines recent scholarship proposing the use of memory practice to remedy the traumatic aftermaths of Nigeria-Biafra War past. The assumption sustained in this scholarship is that through certain cultural memory practices such as truth commissions and commemorative rituals some form of appeasement might be reached regarding the extent of subsistence of that traumatic past. We fault these scholarly claims proposing memory as panacea …
The banality of infrastructural racism through the lens of peace and conflict studies
The Peace and Conflict Studies (PACS) discipline has advanced critical analysis of armed conflict, ethnic violence, and peacebuilding, yet remains marginally silent on racism/racialisation as a form of violence. Consequently, we employ in this article the notions of ‘structure’ and ‘infrastructure’ to bring the multiple layers of racism to PACS attention. The structure, as we conceive it, are the tangibles of racism, manifested, performed, and en…
Being and Becoming “African” in the Postcolony
The Paradox(es) of Diasporic Identity, Race and Belonging
Political science (18 works) · Sociology (18 works) · Law (17 works) · Politics (14 works) · Law (12 works) · Political economy (12 works) · Economics (9 works) · Political Conflict and Governance (7 works) · Criminology (6 works) · Development economics (6 works)