Reflections

MORAL DECADENCE IN NIGERIA

BY: NWABUISI JOHNPAUL

The shift from civilian rule to military rule and then back to civilian rule had its enormous effects on the Nigerian state. While some of this shift favored the Nigerian people, a large part of this shift brought about indiscipline, corruption, recession, and so on. During this period there was a decline in the moral standards of the typical Nigerian society. The Nigerian state began to lose its core moral values of respect, honesty, discipline, moral courage and accountability. Corruption happened to be bane of this moral decadence as it found its way into the nook and cranny of Nigeria; be it religion, politics, economy, and our social life.

This present state took corruption as a norm, thus it became easy for us to forget our moral values. The social structure was deeply affected making the youth acquire such bad influence. So, the Nigerian youths failed to be morally resilient, so the usual saying that if you cannot beat them, you join them, holds sway.

At this juncture, it is important for us to realize the harsh effects of our moral decadence on our society. It becomes so difficult for us to grow and be developed. This is because money, skills, talents that should be put into good use for the development of the Nigerian state is channeled into individualism, promotion of immorality, and self-aggrandizement. Thus, people exploit the Nigerian state to promote very deadly ideologies. For instance, it would not be surprising to see people who spend billions of money promoting the gay culture in Nigeria. It would not also be shocking to find out that those who fund terrorist groups in Nigeria are in this country with us. It would not also be out of the blues to see computer savvies who manipulate the computer to do what we locally call “419 or Yahoo Yahoo”.

All these hard effects of moral decadence on us in Nigeria should plunge us into deep reflections. For me, the Kantian categorical imperative should be of assistance to us. Immanuel Kant in his Groundwork Metaphysics for Morals precisely on his first categorical imperative posits that we are to act in a maxim which we can use as a universal law. So, if I decide to steal, stealing becomes my maxim and then if I apply it as a universal law, then I would want others to do so, hence, people begin to steal. But in conscience I know that stealing in the society is detrimental to the growth of that society, thus, it would be morally wrong to posit stealing as a universal law. Conversely, if I act kindly to others, then it means I want kindness to be a universal law, and since others practice it, then the society becomes a better place.

Applying this first categorical imperative of Kant to the Nigerian society, it means that we encouraged to act only in the way we can universalize our actions. This would imply that Nigerians do away with immoral actions such as nepotism, bribery, corruption, embezzlement, inter alia, that stays as a clog in our drive to development. A practical approach could be in the case of the Fulani Herdsmen. These people are known for their nefarious activities, which has claimed loss of lives, properties, and displacements of peoples. The complicity of the Nigerian government raises lots of concerns and questions as to the primary responsibility of a government which is the safeguard of the lives and properties of her citizenry. If these Fulani Herdsmen can realize that their actions are immoral and cannot be a universal law, then they would see the need to make efforts to stop their incessant killings and seek peaceful co-existence. Thus, before they act, they are to check if such actions can become a universal maxim. If for instance, they take killing as a universal law, then all of us we keep killing ourselves until there is nobody to inhabit and take care of mother earth.

The second Kantian categorical imperative asserts that we are not to use people as a means to an end, but as an end in themselves. This second categorical imperative entails that we do not use people to satisfy our own needs and immediate gratification. This is true of the Nigerian government which exploits and preys on the ignorance of the poor masses deceiving them with false manifestos of things that they would do when voted into power. Our politicians violate this second Kantian categorical imperative as they keep using us every year as a means to perpetuate their own whims and caprices. Thus, it is important that they see the need to use people as an end in themselves.

Seeing people as an end in themselves, would mean that we are trying to raise questions and to see means of bettering our society. Thus, the government seeks out ways to help her citizenry and make give them quality education, security of lives and properties, free and fair election, good roads, justice, etc. By doing this, they begin to speak directly to the common Nigerian man and they meet his direct needs; his ends.

As people of good repute our preoccupation should be the desire to uphold these moral virtues and values. We are to contribute our quota in ensuring that we bring sound morals to a morally depraved country like ours. More so, we are to check ourselves and get rid of every form of immorality in our lives. It would be a difficult task for us to inculcate good values in our Nigerian society if we do not have moral rectitude.