By Rasheed Kola Ojikutu
In Nigeria , the word “
marginalisation’’ is on the lips of everyone who could utter it, most of who
place little emphasis on the context of its usage and the meaning. Although, a
social word, it has found profound use in the lexicon of politicians to the
extent of its being a major veil for covering political mischief, agitation and
sometimes violence. What is marginalisation? What does it mean for a group or
an individual to be marginalised?
The Oxford dictionaries define marginalisation as
the treatment of a person, group, or concept as insignificant or peripheral.
The Business Dictionary.com explained it as the process whereby something or
someone is pushed to the edge of a group and accorded lesser importance while
the Psychology Dictionary sees it as the process through which the marginal
groups and their members are identified as not being apart of the main group.