Re-examining human rights abuse in Nigeria from the lenses of the social contract theories

Abstract

Political theories are a set of intellectual constructs and propositions that attempts the explication, analyses and prediction of political phenomena. Political theories are products of political philosophy, which itself finds essence in raising ideas that serve the needs of man in a political society. Social contract theories are therefore constructs and propositions which retrieve the nature of human existence in a pre-state historic society, and his better resolve to submit to constituted authority, for the purpose of peace, human rights and avoidance of man's inhumanity to man on the premise of comparative muscular superiority. The paper is saddled with the responsibility of x-raying the various theories of social contract to answer the question of the essence of the democratic state with the social contract, and its capacity to guarantee fundamental human rights, especially right to life in Nigeria. The paper employed documentary methodology and accessed secondary sources such as textbooks, and relevant online materials. The theoretical focus was the classical social contract theories of Thomas Hobbs, John Locke, and Jean-Jack Rousseau. Findings showed inter alia, that the Nigerian state, since the country's return to democracy in 1999, has dishonoured its own role in the social contract with its citizens. This has synthesized in flagrant abuse of fundamental human rights and consequently, increased insecurity extrajudicial killings among other forms of rising insecurity. We recommended among other things, leadership accountability and fulfillment of campaign promises as a means of reclaiming the confidence of the masses in the Nigerian state.