ATTENTION:
BEFORE
YOU READ THE CHAPTER ONE OF THE PROJECT TOPIC BELOW, PLEASE READ THE
INFORMATION BELOW.THANK YOU!
INFORMATION:
YOU CAN
GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT OF THE TOPIC BELOW. THE FULL PROJECT COSTS N5,000
ONLY. THE FULL INFORMATION ON HOW TO PAY AND GET THE COMPLETE PROJECT IS AT THE
BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE. OR YOU CAN CALL: 08068231953, 08168759420
THE INFLUENCE OF POVERTY ON CRIME
ABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to establish the significant
relationship between poverty and crime in Owerri district of Western Province
of Nigeria. The objective of the study was to investigate the influence of
poverty on crime amongst the residents of Owerri District in Western Province. The
research design for the study was survey research design in which 5 point
likert scale questionnaire on poverty and crime was used study to collect data
from the respondents. The sample for the study consisted of 124 persons (Male
90 and Female 34). Data collected was analyzed using chi-square statistical
method. Results indicated that there was significant relationship between
poverty (financial standing, employment, family structure, social support,
level of education and poverty) and tendency to commit crime among the people
of Owerri district. The recommendation of the study is that improved systems of
education and economic empowerment of the people should be enhanced by the
government in order to reduce crime in the region among the 240,000 inhabitants
of Owerri in Western Nigeria
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND OF
THE STUDY
Owerri District has a population of over 240,000 people, 60%
of this population live below the poverty line of less than 1 US dollar per day
leading to poor standards of living. There is massive population explosion and
pressure on the meagre resources like land, water, health, education,
infrastructure, agriculture and some micro-finance enterprises in the region.
Due to the vicious cycle of poverty, there is gross violation
of human rights as per the Geneva Convention that every person has the right to
life, liberty and security. Other fundamental human rights violated in Owerri
District included article 2 where men and women are to be treated equally which
is not the case, instead they are subordinates and not allowed in decision
making especially on assets. The area has been a high population growth of
youths (70%) who have neither trained, completed school or dropped out of
school due to unemployment have resulted to violent crimes in the area such as
murder, assault, rape, prostitution, theft, burglary, armed gangsters,
banditry, trade in illicit rugs like bhang, changaa (local beer). Article 5 of
the Declaration of Human Rights the states that no one shall be subjected to
torture cruel inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment, economic or
political liberty. The rights of the inhabitants of Owerri have been highly
contested leading them to fall into traps of violent crimes in the region..
Poverty as a social phenomenon has affected the entire
population in the region, poverty and inequality often results due to social
instability, diseases, environmental degradation, struggle for natural
resources and constraints on the basic needs in the society. In 1992 it was
estimated that 42% of the approximately 525 million people in Sub-Saharan
Africa lived below the poverty line of US $ 370 per capita and the number was
expected to increase by 50% in the year 2000. It is noted that women, children,
old age, disabled and the orphans are the most affected with poverty. The
unstable micro-economic environment, poor development policies which yield to
low economic growth not consistent with economic growth, poor infrastructure,
dependency ratio in the area is also high. There is need for proper planning,
decision making and economic empowerment of Owerri people to alleviate poverty
in the region. The District budget allocation should be allocated, reviewed and
strategic plans made to oversee the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) Local
Government Transfer Fund (LATF), Women Development Fund, and Youths Fund to
help improve the income of the people for better standards of living. “People
must not be allowed to be come so poor that they offend or are hurtful to the
society. It is so much that misery and plight of the poor but the discomfort
and the costs of the community which is crucial to the view of the poverty.
Poverty due to low income creates problems for those who are not poor”. (Martya
1981)[1]
Crime as an act of sufficient challenges to the people of
Owerri District has created fear for development and investment in the area
which has no industry and processing services to bring income and employment to
the area. Most of the businesses in the major towns are grocery, and casual
labour especially in
Luanda, Esibuye, Kilingili, Khumusalaba, Mwichio. Most of
the occupation of Owerri is subsistence farming on small holdings mainly done
by women to subsidize the family income. There are many crimes counted in the
area such as juvenile delinquency as crimes counted be of children less than 18
years who make gangsters/ banditry, rape and murder people in the villages I.e.
the Town Down gangsters of Luanda Town, the 42 brothers, and Musumbiji and
others. Acts of crime, gambling, prostitution, vagrancy, homosexual are
notorious to control in the District and thus referred to as victimless crimes.
White collar crimes are committed by respectable persons through corruption.
The purpose of this study is to investigate and establish the relationship
between poverty and crime in Owerri District and recommend ways on reduction of
crime.
The purpose the study was to establish the relationship
between poverty and crime and make recommendations of helping the Abanyole
people of Owerri and the government to alleviate poverty and crime in the area
of study. The research is to generate ways of solving poverty through proper
planning on investments, implementation of government projects solve
unemployment, land tenure problems and enact a good policy legal framework to
curb crime in the area.
Information from this study will be used by Governmental
Departments i.e. Constituency Development Fund (CDF), Youth Fund, District
Budgetary allocations, Education Offices, Provincial Administration and Non-Governmental
Organizations to make right decisions to empower the economic status of the
area to alleviate poverty and violent crimes as well as gross violation of
human rights. The Ministry of Planning and National Development, Ministry of
finance, The Office of the President and Provincial Administration to promote
food security, health and sanitation services, investment and cur b violent
crimes in the region. The study will be useful in investigating and
establishing factors leading to poverty and how to curb them through the
recommendations of the study in accordance to Malthusian’s population Theory on
Fundamental Human rights and conflicting theory on crime issues. The findings
of this study will enable to put down factors leading to poverty and come up
with strategic plans to help reduce it engage the entire population towards
positive economic development of the area.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE
PROBLEM
Poverty has a great influence on the crime rate in Owerri
district of western Nigeria. Poverty can be in state of absolute where there is
lack of the basic resources needed to maintain minimum of the physical health,
normally calculated in calories, while relative poverty has quantitative
dimensions which refer to general standard f living in different societies due
to cultural sensitivity and variations between and within societies over time.
Poverty is due to massive inequality due to poor allocation of investment,
education, planning and policy implementation, inadequate health facilities,
human rights violations such as economic empowerment, right for protection,
security, children’s rights, and right to life.
Owerri area with a population of over 240,000 suffers from
poverty and crime due to underdevelopment and expansive population which
constraints the meagre available natural resources. There are no investments in
the area apart from some small micro-finance investment Nigeria Women Finance
Trust (KWFT) which are created to help women start small business holds. The
Constituency Development Fund (CDF) is also geared towards enhancing small
microfinance projects in education, infrastructure, youths, markets, farming in
the area to alleviate poverty. There are conflicts over the scarce resources
like land ownership, safe drinking water, streams, food, education, health
which results into conflicts and criminal activities and offences due to
poverty. Crime and violent conflicts is growing due to disparities in wealth,
increasing unemployment among the youths, population press he on land and
resources leading to environmental degradation which provokes social
discontent, polarization leading to social strife in the region. According to
vigorous approach theory societal conditions of deep spread and deep poverty is
essentially deprivation suffered by a large segment of some important
essentials for sustenance such as sufficient income to provide housing,
clothing, food and education, health facilities adequate opportunities for
production employment which leads to societal stress. Stress leads to
increasing the anger and frustration of the poor suffering who are then
exploited by violence promoting war bent demagoguery. Indeed scarcities of the
basic needs amongst the population causes social segmentation, group formation
and strengthen groups identity which creates violent collective action which
takes forms from rime war, terrorism, riots, civil insurgencies, political
repressions to its ultimate forms.
Most of the inhabitants of Owerri live on subsistence
farming on small holdings of less than Mi an acre and with poor farming
methods, lack of farm inputs and technical agricultural know-how have lessen
the yield to sustain the family needs. The are no income generating investments
as factories, plantations (cash crops) to employ the youths and e working
population in the areas leading to severe unemployment and crime in the region.
In 1991 the United Nations crime prevention journals stipulated that crime has accelerated
far beyond the current reach of international community. Crime is particularly
serious impediment to harmonious development. It dissipates or misdirects the
gains of economic growth and impairs the quality of life; crime threatens
safety well being a d personal integrity of us all. (United Nations: 1991) Some
other criminal offences conducted in the region is chang’aa brewing (local
illicit brew)., substance abuse like bhang, cocaine, processor and trafficking
of drugs in towns like Luanda, Kima, Ekwanda, Esibuye, Kilingili, Khumusalaba,
and Esirulo has granted more crime impediment to investment in the region
leading to absolute poverty. The study seeks to address the influence of
poverty on crime, the consequences to the population in Owerri District and
hence recommends ways to curb the menace.
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE
STUDY
The purpose the study was to establish the relationship
between poverty and crime and make recommendations of helping the Abanyole
people of Owerri and the government to alleviate poverty and crime in the area
of study. The research is to generate ways of solving poverty through proper
planning on investments, implementation of government projects solve
unemployment, land tenure problems and enact a good policy legal framework to
curb crime in the area.
1.4 RESEARCH
OBJECTIVES
The major objective of the study was to investigate the
influence of poverty on crime amongst the residents of Owerri District in
Western Province.
The specific objectives of the study will be:
1) To determine economic factors
that lead to a vicious cycle of poverty in Owerri District
2)
To investigate how poverty causes crime in the area of Owerri District.
3)
To establish development plans to alleviate poverty in the region.
4)
To assess types of criminal offences and when committed in the region
and how they are solved.
1.5 RESEARCH
QUESTIONS
Study was guided by the following questions:-
1.
What
is the relationship between financial standing of the respondents and crime
among the Abanyole in Owerri District in western Nigeria?
2.
What is the relationship between
employment of the respondents and crime among the Abanyole in Owerri District
in western Nigeria?
3.
What
is the relationship between the family structure and crime of the respondents
among the Abanyole of Owerri District in western Nigeria?
4.
What
is relationship between the family support among the respondents and crime
among Abanyole of Owerri District in western Nigeria?
5. What is
the relationship the level of education and crime of the respondents among the
Abanyole of Owerri District in western Nigeria?
6.
What
is the relationship between possession of property and crime of the respondents
in Owerri region
1.6. NULL
HYPOTHESIS
1.
There
is no relationship between financial standing and crime among the Abanyole in
Owerri District.
2.
There is no relationship between
employment and crime among the Abanyole in Owerri District.
3.
There
is no relationship between family structure and crime among the Abanyole of
Owerri District.
4. There is no relationship
between family support and crime among the Abanyole of Owerri District.
5.
There
is no relationship between the level of education and crime among the Abanyole
of Owerri District.
6.
There
is no relationship between possession of property and crime among the Abanyole
of Owerri District.
1.7 SCOPE OF THE
STUDY
The study covered Owerri District of Western Nigeria which
is one of the most poverty stricken areas resulting to violent crime, crimes
against humanity and gross violation.
The study was limited to assess or establish the
relationship between poverty and crime amongst
240,0
inhabitants of Owerri and its implication on the economic development
within the region.
The study bases its guidelines on Malthusian theory of
population to state the rationale on scarce resources leading to youth bulge and
violence and conflict theory to explain crime and its effects in the study
area. Since it was a wide area the findings were sampled from two major
Divisions Owerri and Luanda.
1.8 SIGNIFICANCE OF
THE STUDY
Information from this study will be used by Governmental
Departments i.e. Constituency Development Fund (CDF), Youth Fund, District
Budgetary allocations, Education Offices, Provincial Administration and
Non-Governmental Organizations to make right decisions to empower the economic
status of the area to alleviate poverty and violent crimes as well as gross
violation of human rights. The Ministry of Planning and National Development,
Ministry of finance, The Office of the President and Provincial Administration
to promote food security, health and sanitation services, investment and cur b
violent crimes in the region. The study will be useful in investigating and
establishing factors leading to poverty and how to curb them through the
recommendations of the study in accordance to Malthusian’s population Theory on
Fundamental Human rights and conflicting theory on crime issues. The findings
of this study will enable to put down factors leading to poverty and come up
with strategic plans to help reduce it engage the entire population towards
positive economic development of the area.
1.9 DEFINITION OF
TERMS
Poverty: The vicious cycle of poverty has been defined as
the phenomenon where poor families become trapped in poverty for at least three
generations. The families have either limited resources or no resources. The
concept of the vicious cycle of poverty holds that low productivity leads to
low income, low income leads to low savings and low savings leads to low
investment and low investment to low productivity.
Crime- A crime is a violation of criminal statutory law and
a specific punishment applied by some government authority generally
accompanies the violation. Criminal activities and crime rates vary in
different legal jurisdictions which accompany differences in rates of
enforcement.
HOW TO GET THE FULL PROJECT WORK
PLEASE, print the following
instructions and information if you will like to order/buy our complete written
material(s).
HOW TO RECEIVE PROJECT MATERIAL(S)
After paying the appropriate amount
(#5,000) into our bank Account below, send the following information to
08068231953 or 08168759420
(1) Your project
topics
(2) Email
Address
(3) Payment
Name
(4) Teller Number
We will send your material(s) after
we receive bank alert
BANK ACCOUNTS
Account Name: AMUTAH DANIEL CHUKWUDI
Account Number: 0046579864
Bank: GTBank.
OR
Account Name: AMUTAH DANIEL CHUKWUDI
Account Number: 2023350498
Bank: UBA.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL:
08068231953 or 08168759420
AFFILIATE
Comments
Post a Comment