Taming The Tides; Nigerian Counter-Terrorism Policy on Boko-Haram Terrorist, Empirical Mixed Method Analysis

Over the years, the Boko Haram insurgency has gradually metamorphosed into a seemly intractable security tide besetting the Northeast region of Nigeria. Despite the efforts of the Nigerian government to adopt concerted counter-terrorism approaches to tackle the terrorist group, it thus appears little has been achieved. This paper explored the efforts of the Nigerian government towards countering the terrorist activities of the group and achieving a terrorist-free nation. The paper adopts the mixed research method using the quantitative and qualitative data collection methods, deploying questionnaires and structured in-depth interview guides; the study finds an overt adoption of the Kinetic approach deployment of military force as the principal constituent of the Nigerian counter-terrorism policy, which was found as ineffective as it fails to address the core reasons for terrorism and the abuse of operation guidelines, raising the question of human rights abuse discredits the efforts of the government. The study recommends a non-kinetic approach that addresses the factors that precipitated the emergence of Boko Haram, cutting off terrorist financiers, general adoption of soft power and an increase in efforts necessary to to win the hearts and minds of the terrorised communities.