A Psychological Perspective to the Rule of Law in Nigeria and Implications for Foreign Direct Investment

Abstract

Democracy involves submission to the will of majority. It is a pact that keeps ‘countrymen’ in the single body politic and is between free men, not between rulers and the ruled. It is in this context that the rule of law becomes the norm. However, Nigerian laws are deliberately punctuated with loopholes so as to serve the interest of successive ruling elites. The social cognitive theory explains the path-ways through which leaders in government perpetrate their guided dictatorship in the name of democracy, as well as why the leadership elite may never surrender to popular democracy as anticipated by the social contract theory; hence corruption among these elites has made most citizens very poor. This scenario engenders distrust, alienation, a sense of deprivation and frustration among the citizens, and culminates in lack of group cohesion, unrest and insecurity as many citizens flout the laws to survive. Thus the investment atmosphere becomes adversely affected.

Keywords: Psychology; Law; Democracy; FDI.