MOBILE COMMUNICATION, UNEMPLOYMENT AND ARMED ROBBERY IN PORT HARCOURT: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS

Abstract

The deregulation of the telecommunication sector in early 2000 by the government was a welcomed development to many Nigerians, because it made communication available to many Nigerians unlike the case under NITEL, and created employment opportunities for many people in both the public and private sectors of the economy. However, despite its tremendous benefits to the Nigerian economy, mobile phones have become easy tools in the hands criminal offenders to perpetrate heinous crimes. Availability of telecommunication, especially GSM and internet has made crimes such as armed robbery, kidnapping, terrorism, cyber stalking, internet fraud etc to be easier to commit. Many armed robbers and kidnappers use mobile phones to plan their operations. Also, it would have been extremely difficult for kidnappers to collect ransom from their victims’ families without the aid of mobile phones. The main objective of this research is to compare the changes in armed robbery trend prior to the introduction of mobile communication in 2001. Two hypotheses were raised and tested using Chi Square(X) and contingency coefficient (c-test). Using time series data on crime and unemployment in Port Harcourt, 20002010, we found that crime rates, especially armed robbery rates increased after the introduction of mobile communication in 2001