Abstract

The paper explores John Locke's social contract theory, engaging with philosophy to analyse his political theory and Nigeria's democratic governance within Nigeria’s social contract. Drawing on Locke's Two Treatises of Government (1689), A Letter Concerning Toleration (1689), and An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1689), the research highlights natural rights, consent of the governed, constitutionalism, the right of government, limited government, and the right of revolution in the context of Nigeria’s polity. The research adopts a qualitative philosophical methodology based on conceptual, textual, and critical analyses of primary and secondary texts, including Locke. The paper submits that Nigeria’s constitutional democracy is Lockean in that it provides for fundamental rights, institutions of representative democracy, and separation of powers. However, democracy in Nigeria has largely reversed these theoretical democratic principles. Electoral misconduct, institutional corruption, elite domination, weak and ineffective accountability frameworks, and inadequate civic engagement have been significant impediments to the social contract between the Nigerian state and citizens. In addition, the paper submits that this is, to a great extent, a philosophical problem of applying Lockean liberalism in post-colonial African states, as it attempts to argue for the absoluteness of Western democracy on the African continent. This gap is addressed in the research by African political philosophy, in particular Ubuntu ethics, consensus democracy, and African progressive systems of governance, among others, as presented by philosophers like Kwasi Wiredu, Mogobe Ramose, and Kwame Gyekye. The paper submits that, for Nigeria, the critical thinking of democracy and Lockean liberalism cannot be the only and all sides to the conundrum, but African notions of democracy and citizenship must be taken on board as well. This study argues that Locke’s social contract theory is still relevant to the practice of democratic governance in Nigeria. This is because it provides a framework within which one can assess the validity of democracy, responsiveness, and the rule of law within a democracy. That said, one must critically tailor the theory to the history, culture, and post-colonial situations of Nigeria.

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