SECTION A: CONTEMPORARY ETHICAL ISSUES
Answer two (2) questions from this section
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Discuss the effects of religious conflict on Nigerian society
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Examine the reasons why students engage in Internet frauds
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Give an overview of the effects of Internet fraud on the society
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Assess the causes of communal conflicts in Nigeria society
SECTION B: HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN SIERRA LEONE AND NIGERIA
Answer two (2) questions from this section
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Examine the areas of cooperation between the colonial masters and the missionaries (from 1800 — 1900)
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Describe the characteristics of Cherubim and Seraphim Movement in Nigeria
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Assess the religious impact of Christianity on the Sierra Leoneans
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Examine the earliest challenges faced by the Christian Missions in Eastern Nigeria.
Full Answers
SECTION A: CONTEMPORARY ETHICAL ISSUES
Question 1: Effects of Religious Conflict on Nigerian Society
Religious conflict — particularly between Christians and Muslims — has had devastating consequences on Nigerian society at multiple levels.
i. Loss of Lives and Physical Destruction
Religious conflicts have claimed thousands of lives across Nigeria, particularly in the Middle Belt states and the North. Communities have been destroyed, churches and mosques burned, and entire villages displaced. The Jos crisis, Kaduna religious riots, and Boko Haram insurgency are notable examples of religiously motivated violence that have caused massive loss of life and property.
ii. Displacement of People
Religious conflicts have forced millions of Nigerians to flee their homes and communities. Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps have become a permanent feature of the Nigerian landscape, particularly in the Northeast. Displaced persons face poverty, malnutrition, disease, and loss of educational opportunities.
iii. Economic Underdevelopment
Communities and regions torn by religious conflict suffer severe economic setbacks. Businesses are destroyed, markets closed, investments scared away, and agricultural activities disrupted. States frequently affected by religious violence consistently rank among Nigeria’s most economically underdeveloped.
iv. Social Division and Distrust
Religious conflict deepens divisions between communities that might otherwise coexist peacefully. It breeds suspicion, hatred, and stereotyping between religious groups, undermining the social cohesion necessary for national development. Inter-religious marriages, friendships, and business partnerships become difficult or impossible in affected areas.
v. Political Instability
Religious tensions are frequently exploited by politicians to mobilize support and undermine opponents, contributing to political instability. The manipulation of religious sentiments in electoral politics has repeatedly destabilized governance at state and national levels.
vi. Educational Disruption
Schools are frequently closed, burned, or abandoned in conflict zones. Children miss education, teachers flee, and entire generations grow up with limited literacy and skills. Boko Haram — whose name means “Western education is forbidden” — specifically targeted schools, causing massive educational disruption in the Northeast.
vii. Psychological Trauma
Survivors of religious violence carry deep psychological wounds — post-traumatic stress disorder, grief, anger, and a desire for revenge — that perpetuate cycles of violence across generations. The psychological damage to communities affected by religious conflict is profound and long-lasting.
viii. Damage to Nigeria’s International Image
Persistent religious conflict damages Nigeria’s reputation internationally, discouraging foreign investment, tourism, and diplomatic partnerships. It portrays Nigeria as an unstable, dangerous environment rather than the potentially prosperous nation it could be.
Question 2: Reasons Why Students Engage in Internet Fraud
Internet fraud — commonly called “Yahoo Yahoo” in Nigerian slang — has become alarmingly prevalent among students. Several factors drive this phenomenon.
i. Poverty and Economic Hardship
Many Nigerian students come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and struggle to meet basic needs — school fees, accommodation, feeding, and transportation. When legitimate means of survival seem inadequate or inaccessible, some students turn to internet fraud as a quick solution to economic pressure.
ii. Get-Rich-Quick Mentality
Nigerian society has increasingly celebrated wealth regardless of its source. The glorification of material success — expensive cars, designer clothes, lavish lifestyles — without corresponding emphasis on hard work and integrity creates a cultural environment where shortcuts to wealth are normalized and even admired.
iii. Peer Pressure and Social Influence
When students see their peers living extravagantly through internet fraud — and receiving social admiration rather than condemnation — they face enormous pressure to participate. The desire to belong, to be respected, and to match the lifestyle of fraudulent peers is a powerful motivator.
iv. Unemployment and Lack of Opportunity
Many students observe that graduates struggle for years to find meaningful employment despite their qualifications. When legitimate education appears to offer no guaranteed economic future, some students conclude that fraud offers better returns on investment than hard study.
v. Weak Law Enforcement
The perception that internet fraudsters are rarely caught, prosecuted, or seriously punished encourages students to believe that the risk is low and the reward is high. When fraudsters operate openly and visibly without consequences, it signals that the activity is effectively tolerated.
vi. Easy Access to Technology
The widespread availability of smartphones, laptops, and internet connectivity gives students the technical tools needed to engage in fraud. Online tutorials and criminal networks make it relatively easy for beginners to learn fraudulent techniques.
vii. Moral and Religious Decline
The weakening of moral and religious values in families, schools, and society means that many young people lack the ethical framework to resist temptation. When the fear of God, respect for honesty, and concern for victims are absent, fraud becomes easier to rationalize.
viii. Influence of Social Media
Social media platforms amplify the display of ill-gotten wealth and create aspirational pressure. When fraudsters flaunt their lifestyle on social media to widespread admiration, it normalizes and glamorizes the behavior for impressionable students.
Question 3: Effects of Internet Fraud on Society
Internet fraud — popularly known as cybercrime or “Yahoo Yahoo” — has wide-ranging and deeply damaging effects on individuals, institutions, and national development.
i. Financial Losses to Victims
The most direct effect is financial harm to victims — both local and international. Individuals lose life savings, businesses lose funds, and institutions suffer significant financial damage. Victims are often left in poverty and emotional distress.
ii. Damage to Nigeria’s International Reputation
Nigeria has become internationally associated with internet fraud — the “419 scam” is known worldwide. This damages the country’s reputation, making Nigerian passports and email addresses objects of suspicion globally. Honest Nigerian businesspeople, academics, and professionals face discrimination and distrust in international dealings.
iii. Brain Drain of Talented Youth
When talented young Nigerians invest their intelligence, creativity, and energy into fraud rather than productive enterprise, the nation loses enormous human capital. The ingenuity that could drive technological innovation and economic growth is diverted into criminal activity.
iv. Corruption of Moral Values
The normalization of internet fraud corrupts societal values, particularly among the youth. Dishonesty, deception, and exploitation of others become normalized. Communities that tolerate or celebrate fraudsters lose their moral compass, creating a culture where integrity is devalued.
v. Economic Underdevelopment
Internet fraud discourages foreign investment, trade, and partnerships with Nigeria. International businesses are reluctant to engage with Nigerian counterparts due to fear of fraud, limiting economic development and job creation.
vi. Psychological Harm to Victims
Beyond financial loss, victims of internet fraud — particularly romance scams and elder fraud — suffer severe psychological trauma, including depression, shame, anxiety, and in extreme cases, suicidal ideation. The emotional damage can be as devastating as the financial loss.
vii. Criminalization of Nigerian Youth
Students and young people who engage in internet fraud develop criminal mindsets and networks that can escalate to more serious crimes — drug trafficking, money laundering, and violence. Internet fraud is frequently a gateway to deeper criminal involvement.
viii. Strain on Law Enforcement
The scale of cybercrime places enormous strain on law enforcement agencies and the justice system. Resources that could address other social problems are consumed in investigating and prosecuting cybercrime cases.
Question 4: Causes of Communal Conflicts in Nigerian Society
Communal conflicts — violent clashes between communities based on ethnicity, religion, land, or resource competition — are a persistent challenge in Nigeria.
i. Land and Resource Disputes
Competition over fertile agricultural land and natural resources is one of the most common triggers of communal conflict in Nigeria. The recurring clashes between Fulani herdsmen and farming communities — particularly in the Middle Belt — are fundamentally rooted in competition over land for grazing and cultivation.
ii. Ethnic and Tribal Rivalries
Nigeria’s enormous ethnic diversity — with over 250 ethnic groups — has historically been a source of tension. Historical grievances, stereotypes, and competition between ethnic groups for political power and economic resources frequently erupt into violence. The Tiv-Jukun, Ife-Modakeke, and Aguleri-Umuleri conflicts are examples of ethnically-rooted communal violence.
iii. Religious Differences
The sharp divide between the predominantly Muslim North and predominantly Christian South creates fertile ground for religiously motivated communal conflict. Religious identity is often politicized, and perceived slights against one religion can trigger violent reprisals that escalate into communal warfare.
iv. Political Manipulation
Politicians frequently exploit communal identities and tensions for electoral advantage, inciting communities against one another to mobilize votes or destabilize opponents. When political leaders weaponize communal grievances rather than addressing them, conflict becomes inevitable.
v. Historical Grievances
Long-standing historical injustices — dispossession of land, past massacres, political marginalization — are carried across generations and can erupt into violence when triggered by new provocations. Communities that feel their historical grievances have never been acknowledged or addressed are particularly vulnerable to conflict.
vi. Poverty and Economic Inequality
Economic deprivation and inequality create conditions in which communities compete desperately for scarce resources. When people lack adequate means of livelihood, they become vulnerable to manipulation by conflict entrepreneurs who offer money or identity-based justifications for violence.
vii. Weak Government and Poor Conflict Resolution Mechanisms
Ineffective governance, inadequate security forces, and the absence of credible conflict resolution mechanisms allow minor disputes to escalate into full-scale communal wars. When communities lack faith in the government’s ability to deliver justice, they resort to self-help violence.
viii. Proliferation of Small Arms
The widespread availability of illegal weapons has dramatically increased the lethality of communal conflicts. What might once have been resolved with traditional weapons now results in mass casualties because communities are armed with sophisticated firearms.
SECTION B: HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN SIERRA LEONE AND NIGERIA
Question 5: Areas of Cooperation Between Colonial Masters and Missionaries (1800–1900)
The relationship between European colonial governments and Christian missionaries in West Africa during the nineteenth century was characterized by extensive mutual cooperation, though not without occasional tension.
i. Education
Missionaries established schools and educational institutions wherever they worked, and colonial governments frequently supported and funded these efforts. The colonial administration recognized that educated Africans were needed as clerks, interpreters, and administrative assistants. Mission schools thus served both evangelical and colonial administrative purposes simultaneously. Institutions like Fourah Bay College in Sierra Leone (founded 1827) exemplified this cooperation.
ii. Suppression of the Slave Trade
Both the British colonial government and the missionaries were united in their opposition to the transatlantic slave trade. The British Navy’s West Africa Squadron worked to intercept slave ships, while missionaries simultaneously worked to undermine the social and economic foundations of the trade. Freed slaves resettled in Freetown, Sierra Leone, became the foundation of a Christian community that missionaries nurtured.
iii. Medical Services
Missionaries established hospitals and dispensaries that provided healthcare to African populations. Colonial governments supported these medical missions as they reduced mortality among both African populations and European administrators. Medical missions served as a key point of entry into communities resistant to Christianity.
iv. Translation and Linguistic Work
Missionaries learned local languages, developed written scripts for previously unwritten languages, and translated the Bible into African languages. The linguistic and anthropological knowledge they gathered was also valuable to colonial administrators for understanding and governing local populations.
v. Infrastructure Development
Missionaries often pioneered the establishment of roads, bridges, and communication networks in areas they evangelized. Colonial governments built upon this infrastructure, and the two groups frequently cooperated in developing the physical foundations of colonial administration.
vi. Pacification of Communities
Missionaries sometimes worked alongside colonial forces to pacify communities resistant to colonial rule, arguing that peace was necessary for effective evangelization. In return, colonial authorities provided protection for missionary activities in potentially hostile areas.
vii. Promotion of "Legitimate Commerce"
Both missionaries and colonial governments promoted the replacement of the slave trade with “legitimate commerce” — the trade in agricultural products such as palm oil, cotton, and groundnuts. Missionaries encouraged African converts to engage in honest agricultural and commercial activity, which also served colonial economic interests.
Question 6: Characteristics of the Cherubim and Seraphim Movement in Nigeria
The Cherubim and Seraphim (C&S) Society is one of Nigeria’s oldest and most significant African Independent Churches, founded in 1925 by Moses Orimolade Tunolase and Christiana Abiodun Emmanuel in Lagos.
i. African Indigenous Identity
The C&S movement represents a distinctly African expression of Christianity, blending Christian faith with African cultural sensibilities. It emerged as a response to the perceived foreignness of missionary Christianity and sought to make the faith more relevant to African experience and worldview.
ii. Emphasis on Prayer and Visions
Prayer is the absolute center of C&S worship and practice. Members engage in extended, fervent prayer sessions — often lasting through the night. Visions, dreams, and prophetic revelations are highly valued as means of divine communication, and members who receive such experiences are given special respect within the community.
iii. Use of White Garments
Members of the C&S wear distinctive white robes during worship services. The white garment symbolizes purity, holiness, and spiritual readiness. This practice distinguishes them visually from other Christian denominations and gives them their popular designation as “white garment churches.”
iv. Healing and Deliverance
Divine healing — of physical illness, mental disturbance, and spiritual oppression — is a central feature of C&S ministry. Members believe strongly in miraculous healing through prayer, fasting, and the use of consecrated items such as holy water. This healing ministry has been a major factor in the movement’s growth and appeal.
v. Removal of Footwear
Members remove their shoes upon entering places of worship, treating the church ground as holy ground — a practice rooted in the biblical example of Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:5). This practice reflects the movement’s deep sense of the holiness and immediate presence of God.
vi. Use of Psalms and Old Testament Practices
The C&S places great emphasis on the Psalms as sources of spiritual power, using specific Psalms for healing, protection, and deliverance. Many Old Testament practices — such as fasting, the use of incense, and elaborate ritual — are incorporated into worship.
vii. Vigils and Night Prayers (Ìtọ̀jú)
All-night prayer vigils are a hallmark of C&S practice. These vigils are believed to be particularly powerful times for receiving divine visions and breakthroughs, and they draw large numbers of participants seeking healing, guidance, and deliverance.
viii. Strong Belief in the Holy Spirit
The C&S places enormous emphasis on the active work of the Holy Spirit in the life of believers — through prophecy, speaking in tongues, healing, and guidance. This charismatic dimension made the movement spiritually attractive to Africans who found missionary Christianity too intellectual and insufficiently experiential.
Question 7: Religious Impact of Christianity on Sierra Leoneans
Christianity has had a profound and multidimensional impact on Sierra Leone since the establishment of Freetown as a settlement for freed slaves in 1787.
i. Establishment of Education
The missionaries who accompanied and followed the freed slave settlers established schools throughout Sierra Leone. The Church Missionary Society (CMS) founded Fourah Bay College in 1827 — the first Western-style university in West Africa — which became a major center of education for the entire region. Christianity thus gave Sierra Leone a significant educational head start compared to many other West African territories.
ii. Abolition of the Slave Trade
The freed slave community in Freetown — the Krio — became ardent Christians and strong opponents of the slave trade. The Christian mission in Sierra Leone was intimately connected with the abolitionist cause, and Sierra Leone served as a base for the British effort to suppress the Atlantic slave trade. Christianity thus played a direct role in ending one of history’s greatest evils in the region.
iii. Development of the Krio Community and Culture
The Krio people — descendants of freed slaves resettled in Freetown — developed a distinctive Christian culture that blended African heritage with Western Christian practice. Krio Christianity became a defining element of Sierra Leonean cultural identity, producing a community that was literate, entrepreneurial, and deeply influenced by Christian values.
iv. Social Welfare and Medical Services
Missionary organizations established hospitals, clinics, and social welfare institutions throughout Sierra Leone. The Christian commitment to caring for the sick, the poor, and the marginalized transformed social attitudes and created institutions of care that continue to serve Sierra Leoneans today.
v. Moral and Ethical Transformation
Christianity introduced new moral frameworks emphasizing honesty, compassion, the dignity of all persons, and the equality of all people before God. These values gradually challenged traditional practices considered harmful — such as human sacrifice, certain initiation rites, and the mistreatment of the vulnerable.
vi. Political Leadership and Nationalism
Educated Christian Sierra Leoneans — particularly from the Krio community — became significant political and intellectual leaders. Men like Samuel Ajayi Crowther (though primarily associated with Nigeria, educated in Sierra Leone) exemplified how Christian education produced leaders who would shape West African history. Christianity thus contributed to the development of Sierra Leone’s political consciousness and nationalist movement.
vii. Spread of Christianity to Other Parts of West Africa
Sierra Leone served as a launching pad for Christian mission throughout West Africa. Educated Krio Christians became missionaries, teachers, and evangelists who carried Christianity to Nigeria, Ghana, and other parts of the region. Sierra Leone’s Christian community thus had an influence far beyond its own borders.
Question 8: Earliest Challenges Faced by Christian Missions in Eastern Nigeria
When Christian missionaries — particularly the Church Missionary Society (CMS) and later the Roman Catholic Mission — began work in Eastern Nigeria in the mid-nineteenth century, they encountered numerous formidable challenges.
i. Hostile Climate and Tropical Diseases
The Niger Delta and Eastern Nigerian environment was extremely hostile to European missionaries. Malaria, yellow fever, dysentery, and other tropical diseases killed missionaries at alarming rates. The Niger Delta was known as the “white man’s grave,” and the high mortality rate among early missionaries severely hampered the growth of the mission. Many missionaries died within months of arriving.
ii. Language Barriers
Eastern Nigeria was home to numerous distinct languages and dialects — Igbo alone had many mutually unintelligible dialects. Missionaries faced the enormous challenge of learning these languages, developing written forms, and translating the Bible and other Christian materials. Effective evangelization was nearly impossible without mastery of local languages.
iii. Opposition from Traditional Religion
The Igbo and other Eastern Nigerian peoples had deeply rooted traditional religious systems — including belief in chi (personal spirit), Ala (earth goddess), ancestor veneration, and the oracle systems like the Arochukwu Long Juju. These systems were not merely religious but were central to social organization, conflict resolution, and community identity. Missionaries who challenged these systems faced fierce resistance from traditional religious authorities and communities.
iv. The Slave Trade
The Atlantic slave trade had deeply destabilized Eastern Nigerian societies for centuries, creating an environment of insecurity, mutual distrust, and social fragmentation. The powerful Aro traders who controlled the Long Juju oracle also dominated the slave trade and actively resisted missionary incursion into their territory, seeing Christianity as a threat to their economic and religious power.
v. Resistance from Local Chiefs and Political Authorities
Many traditional rulers saw Christian missionaries as agents of foreign cultural and political domination. They feared — correctly in many cases — that Christianity would undermine their authority, challenge traditional customs, and pave the way for colonial conquest. Some chiefs actively expelled or threatened missionaries who entered their territories.
vi. Suspicion of Western Education
Many communities were initially suspicious of the schools established by missionaries, fearing that Western education would alienate their children from traditional culture and community responsibilities. Parents were reluctant to send their children to mission schools, and missionaries often had to rely on freed slaves, orphans, and social outcasts as their first students.
vii. Logistical Difficulties
The physical geography of Eastern Nigeria — dense forests, numerous rivers and creeks, lack of roads — made travel and communication extremely difficult. Establishing mission stations, maintaining supply lines, and communicating between different mission outposts were constant logistical challenges that slowed the spread of Christianity.
viii. Inter-Mission Rivalry
As different missionary societies — CMS, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist — worked in Eastern Nigeria, competition and rivalry between them sometimes undermined the overall Christian mission. Disputes over territory, methods, and theology distracted from the primary evangelical purpose and confused local populations about the nature of Christianity.