Manipulative and Coercive Power and the Social-Ecological Determinants of Violent Conflicts in the Niger Delta of Nigeria

The protracted conflict in Nigeria’s Niger Delta is linked to the power dynamics that define the interaction among micro-and macro-sociopolitical factors related to oil production. This paper examines how individual, interpersonal, community, and societal factors fuel violent conflict and affect efforts to build peace through cooperation, dialogue, and participation in the Niger Delta. Using a cohort of eighty-five focus group participants from fifteen oil-producing communities in Rivers State, this article analyzes the extent to which violent conflicts in the Niger Delta are produced by the exercise of manipulative and coercive power by the Nigerian government and multinational oil companies operating in the region. The participants identified several primary sources of conflict, including divide and rule policies, unemployment, rigging of elections, military raids and suppression, chieftaincy tussle, secrecy, bribery, corruption, and environmental degradation. These factors pertain to the exercise of manipulation and coercion by government and oil companies in the Niger Delta.