THE SECURITY INTELLIGENCE AND INVESTIGATION SYSTEM IN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT. – (A CASE STUDY OF LADIPO MARKET, MUSHIN LGA, LaAGOS STATE)

Abstract

This study examined “Project topic: THE SECURITY INTELLIGENCE AND INVESTIGATION SYSTEM IN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT. – (A CASE STUDY OF LADIPO MARKET, MUSHIN LGA, LaAGOS STATE)”.Two  research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for the study. The population of the study comprised all business owners in Ladipo market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State. The sample consisted of 382 respondents from the market. Simple Random sampling technique was adopted in sampling the population. Questionnairewith reliability coefficient of 0.85 and interview schedule were used for data collection. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the two research questions. Chi-square test of goodness-of-fit was used to test the two hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study established that Security Challenges have significant impact on business activities in Ladipo Market, Mushin LGA. The findings also revealed that there would be a significant relationship between the adoption of Security Intelligence and the level of Security in the market. Based on the findings of the study, it was recommended among other things that security agencies should engage in intelligence gathering and sharing to ensure effective crime control and prevention.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Security means the ability of a nation to protect her human and material as well as financial resources against anything that will be a threat to its existence. It is a condition of being protected physically, emotionally and psychologically from harm, attack and terror. Achumba, Ighomereho and Akpor-Robaro (2013) describe security as the stability and continuity of livelihood (stable and steady income), predictability of daily life (knowing what to expect), protection from crime (feeling safe) and freedom from psychological harm (safety or protection from emotional stress). This results in the assurance that one is wanted, accepted, loved and protected in one’s community or neighborhood and by people around.

Security has to do with freedom from danger, anxiety and fear; a situation that shows that a country is not exposed to internal sabotage or external attack. On the broader sense, security is the struggle to secure the most basic necessities of life such as food, fuel, medicine and shelter (Obafemi, 2006). Ojeje (2013) defines security as the struggle to secure the most basicnecessities of life: food, shelter, health care, transportation and life itself.

A situation where people and properties are at risk of being harmed or destroyed, there is no security but insecurity has set in. Anything that threatens the continued existence of a nation as a united and sovereign entity and that can tamper with the territorial integrity of a nation tends to be a challenge to the security of that nation. In Nigeria today, there are numerous security issues which seem to affect the intended effective achievement of the Nigerian goals on the protection of human lives and properties. Some of the issues that may weigh down the security of the nation may be youth militancy, communal violence, political assassination, kidnapping, climate change, trafficking, religious crisis, Fulani herdsmen unrest and drug abuse (Okosun, 2013).

According to Abimbola and Adesote (2012), since the return of Nigeria to civilian democratic rule in 1999, the country has been facing national security challenges ranging from Boko Haram insurgency, cultism, kidnapping, human trafficking, drug abuse, oil pipeline vandalism, Fulani herdsmen invasion of farming communities and other forms of criminality. They note further that the high rate of kidnapping, armed robbery and political assassinations are added dimensions to the security challenges which are stretching the nation to its limits, sometimes constituting a great threat to the very fabric of its existence. Dania and Eboh (2013) observe that Nigeria as a nation has been beclouded with problems of insecurity such as cultism, armed robbery, kidnapping, advance fee fraud (419), assassination/murders, and thuggery/touting and many others.

Businesses are facing increasing security risks daily. National, sub-national, or community security is a prototypical public good. It is non-rival in consumption; each citizen enjoys the full amount of security produced, without restricting or excluding the consumption by other citizens (Bruck, 2004). Insecurity therefore imposes costs on people who are risk averse. According to Bruck, costs of insecurity are composed of three effects. First, the direct cost resulting from the underlying risky event itself; second, the indirect first-order costs induced by the agent’s reaction to a threat; and finally, the indirect second-order costs that are caused by the policy responses to the event and to the agents’ reactions. Direct effects of insecurity include losses in property rights, output, utility, health or lives resulting from events such as theft, fraud, computer viruses, power cuts, etc.

The use of intelligence is therefore necessary in order to curb insecurity in the Nigerian business environment. Intelligence simply refers the collection of information of security or political value. It is common knowledge that nations require intelligence about their immediate environment and that of other nations. This is necessary because, in order to guarantee their security, they need to keep track of internal and external threats (Lowenthal, 2000).  Intelligence is a critical element in the success of all human endeavour, be it in business, governance or military operations. In the context of businessoperations, intelligence is vital for guiding operations. If the intelligence is right; chances are that the operation will be successful. The conduct of security operations in Nigeria is shaped by the peculiarity of the security environment; thus, security operation could be proactive or reactive. When it is proactive, it involves essentially the use of intelligence to avert any threat to national security. These threats could be in the form of sabotage, subversion, terrorism and all other destructive actions that could undermine national security. Reactive security operations involve the use of security apparatuses to contain conflicts that are already on ground. When that happens, states involve security operations that are reactive in nature and the use of military force is employed in conjunction with national intelligence assets to contain threats (Jackson et al, 2004).

In Nigeria, these internal threats manifest mostly in the form of communal conflicts, both inter and intra, ethnic, religious as well as finding expression in militant activities. Typical examples of a security operation in plateau state is the operation safe haven. The mandate of these security operations was to reverse the state of insecurity in the affected areas. Nigeria has had to grapple over the years with the challenge of inadequate intelligence sharing amongst its security and law enforcement agencies. The non effectiveness of the intelligence in support of security operations in Nigeria are attributed to inadequate human and technical intelligence capabilities.

As a result of the above problem, this paper therefore intends to examine “THE SECURITY INTELLIGENCE AND INVESTIGATION SYSTEM IN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT. – (A CASE STUDY OF LADIPO MARKET, MUSHIN LGA, LAGOS STATE)”.

1.2 Statement Of The  Problem

To conduct intelligence activities, the Federal Government has a variety of agencies such as the Department of State Service (DSS) also known as the state security service (SSS), the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA). These security agencies have over time developed capacities to produce timely and accurate intelligence to confront cases that threaten national unity and security. Regrettably, the proper management and accurate designation of tasks for these intelligence agencies to support national security objectives has been a major problem. In the same vein, the views of operatives that intelligence management in Nigeria appears to be with lack of analytical skills, and questionable real time intelligence which negates the value of intelligence product in security operations.

The result of this poor intelligence gathering system in Nigeria has led to increased criminal activities in Nigeria which is negatively affecting business organizations. It is widely agreed, that for businesses to thrive, there must exist a secure business environment to attract investors and encourage business owners in achieving organizational goals. These contending issues have therefore thrown up renewed interest in the analysis of security intelligence and investigation systems  in business environment.

1.3 Objective of the Study

The main objective of the study was to  examine “THE SECURITY INTELLIGENCE AND INVESTIGATION SYSTEM IN BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT. – (A CASE STUDY OF LADIPO MARKET, MUSHIN LGA, LAGOS STATE)”.  Specifically, the study sought to:

1. Examine the impact of security challenges on business activities inLadipo market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State.
2. Determine the impact of the adoption of security intelligence on the level of Security in Ladipo Market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State.

1.4. Research Questions

The following research questions guided the study:

3. What are the of Security Challenges on business activities in Ladipo market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State.
4. To what extent would the adoption of security intelligence improve the level of Security in Ladipo Market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State.

 

1.5 Hypotheses

The following hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level ofsignificance:

1. There is no significant impact of security challenges on business activities in Ladipo Market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State.
2. There is no significant impact between the adoption of Security intelligence on the level of Security in Ladipo market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State.
   • Significance Of The Study

The study would be of immense importance to government at all levels, security agencies and all related stakeholders as it would highlight the role of intelligence on security in Ladipo Market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State with a view to providing improved security to lives and properties which is a major responsibility of government in Ladipo Market, Mushin LGA, Lagos State of plateau state. The study would also benefit students, researchers and scholars who are interested in developing further studies on the subject matter by being a source of related and recent literature.

1.7 SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study is on security intelligence and investigation system in business environment using Ladipo Market, Mushin LGA, Lagos state as a case study.