Journal for Deradicalization (Jun 2016)
Civilian Joint Task Force’ (CJTF) – A Community Security Option: A Comprehensive and Proactive Approach of Reducing Terrorism
Abstract
Since the Boko Haram uprising in 2009, the Nigerian government has employed various strategies as counter-terrorism measures to stem the atrocities of the group. These strategies include amnesty negotiations, implementation of emergency law in the northeast, increase in security spending to the deployment of military force. In the midst of these security measures, the civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) emerged, first as a community effort, and later as a joint effort with the security forces to help fight Boko Haram. The civilian JTF has helped recover towns and villages from Boko Haram, rescued women in the northeast and helped identify Boko Haram members shielded by some local people. Although doubts have been expressed in some quatres that the civilian JTF could transform into ethnic militias, the Boko Haram security threat neutralized by the group indicates an untapped security potential in Nigerian communities. However, one approach that has yet to be pursued is community security option. Community security option is a model built around proactive citizen-driven communal response. This article explains the role of civilian JTF and how civilian JTF can be used to investigate terrorism in Nigeria. This article will contribute to the discourse on the imperative of African-inspired mechanisms to solving African security problems.
