Simply put, in most developing countries public officials feel and behave as if they are above the law. Put differently, the psychology of public office holders is that it is their duty to make laws, policies, regulations, guidelines, rules and procedures, while it is the duty of the citizens to obey. This simply translates to a mentality of master-servant relationship which is antithetical to the governing psychology in democratic and republican nations, where everybody (rulers and the ruled) are governed by the universally accepted principle of equality under the law. Although critics are quick to add that this equality before the law thesis holds more in theory than in practice, but it is gratifying that its ideals give a good measure of hope to the citizens.
In Nigeria, the mentality of feeling and behaving above the law, (rife as it is), is regrettably a major driver of impunity and all other attributes of bad governance at both the federal and state government levels. COVID-19 containment efforts by public officials in Nigeria have glaringly exposed the widespread nature of this psychology of acting above the law. For instance, a good number of officials who are discharging their duties of appealing to citizens to obey COVID-19 safety rules (such as social/physical distancing) are found sitting or standing in national television in a manner that violates the same safety rules.
Few days ago, one state governor while issuing out COVID-19 safety rules was seen touching his nose in a manner that suggested he is not among those required to desist frm touching their mouth, eyes and nose (beware of ‘men’ in short). Perhaps this business-as-usual mentality was a reflex action or perhaps still, the case of the saying old habits die hard. Yet as leaders, the principle of leadership-by-example demands greater responsibility which again requires being conscious of one’s position and role at all times.
‘Lawmakers as Lawbreakers’ was a very apt title of an article by a Columbia University School of Law professor Ittai Bar-Siman-Tov in 2010 (Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/43292179_Lawmakers_as_Lawbreakers). The point made by Professor Ittai resonates well with our viewpoint here about public officials in Nigeria disobeying the law (and regulations and guidelines) they themselves made and help to propagate in this fight against COVID-19 pandemic. The case of some of the members of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, who violated part of the COVID-19 safety guidelines while attending the burial of Mallam Abba Kyari (the late Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari), is an illustrative evidence par excellence.
Furthermore, even after apologising to the nation for their embarrassingly non-strict observance of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) guidelines, they still failed to quarantine themselves as directed by Mr. President. This is a clear manifestation of pure psychology of impunity par excellence once again.
What may worry some obedient and patriotic Nigerians is the ease with which some very senior appointees of the President disobey his directives without any sanctions. A former Inspector-General of Police who was directed to relocate to Benue State in the wake of the gruesome killings of Benue indigenes by the rampaging herdsmen few years ago, failed to obey the directive and nothing happened after that. This recalcitrant behaviour raises the question as to whether there is something these top public officials know about the running of the Buhari administration, that the rest of us outside the corridors of power do not know. Whatever is the answer, this anomaly of acting above the law generates its own conspiracy theories or unhelpful speculations that further damage the image of the government.
In our earlier article (see Sundiatapost.com, April 8, 2020) titled ‘COVID-19 pandemic and your position in society’, we made the salient point that COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated that it does not respect anyone’s high position (just as the ultimate presence of death does as a leveler). But unlike death, COVID-19 does its own in a more dramatic and embarrassing manner at a time one may be feeling and showing a sense of good health. Another point we underscored in the same article is that ‘although the virus respects no one, some people still but regrettably feel that their position can exempt them from even obeying the lockdown order of the government’. This is exactly the point being made here which is that some public officials think their position can exempt them from being infected with the coronavirus because they are above the law. But regrettably, many examples of high profile cases of infections abound across the world. COVID-19 pandemic makes everyone to fall under the law, and those who decide to act above the law may have themselves to blame.
Dealing with impunity, the case of the Chief Medical Officer of Scotland in the UK who lost her job after flouting the same COVID-19 safety guidelines she played key role in developing and propagating, is a good example of how civilised nations confront acts of impunity. Over here in Nigeria, public officials get away with impunity thereby emboldening many more people to continue committing acts of impunity. Such widespread acts of impunity destroy public trust thereby jeopardising citizens’ support towards effective public policy implementation.
The disobedience by many people to the lockdown order in Abuja for example is a painful illustration of these widespread acts of impunity among Nigerians. Everyone has suddenly become overnight an Essential Services employee in Abuja. In all the major expressways into the City-centre of Abuja (Zuba-Kubwa-Gwarinpa axis, Airport road axis, and the Nyanya-Karu-AYA axis), heavy traffic could be observed in spite of the lockdown restrictions. Although the agitation for lifting of the lockdown restrictions is not only a Nigerian phenomenon, the impunity-angle to the agitation, can be exceptionally observed among Nigerians as men in uniform (for example) drive against the traffic (on one-way) with an air of impunity and creating more traffic chaos for the real essential services workers going to work. Although, some of these violators were commendably arrested, but the damage had already been done. For example, one staff of the National Hospital was seen complaining on television about how she had spent three hours on the road to work because of traffic congestion and the attendant road blocks by security personnel checking violators.
Lastly, the number of people arrested and prosecuted for violating the lockdown order in the FCT Abuja by mobile courts, is evidence of widespread disobedience to the law, which is a typical Nigerian way of behaving with impunity. This needs to be seriously curbed.
Prof. Obasi, a public policy expert teaches in the Department of Public Administration at the University of Abuja. Email: nnamdizik@gmail.com
