Abstract

Crime and insecurity remain a global challenge especially that they constitute serious threat to life and peaceful co-existence of the people. Nigeria is globally recognised as major player in African affairs primarily due to her rich human and natural resources. However, her national security has been continually bedevilled by numerous issues of crime and insecurity such as kidnapping, banditry, insurgency, civil unrest, armed robbery and terrorism. This unprecedented proliferation in criminal activities has set many panicking and most businesses paralyzed. The study therefore examines Nigeria’s rising phenomenon of insecurity and its implications on the socio-economic life of the people. It focuses on the identification of general factors responsible for insecurity in Nigeria; to examine the effects of insecurity on the socio-economic wellbeing of the people; to determine the extent to which people have been victimized of the different forms of crimes; and to proffer viable solutions to guarantee peaceful coexistence among persons living in Nigeria. Survey research design was adopted for the study, where a 14-item structured questionnaire was utilized to elicit relevant information from a total of 204 persons living in Nigeria who constitute the population sample for the study. Three hypotheses were formulated and tested using the chi-square statistical method of data analysis. Findings from the study significantly implicated bad leadership as the main cause of crime proliferation and unstable socioeconomic life among people living in Nigeria. Consequently, among others, the study recommends a deliberate, decisive and concerted effort by all Nigerians with support from the international communities towards instituting credible and reliable leadership personalities and institutions at all levels

Keywords

Crime, Security, Insecurity, Socio-economic, Phenomenon