By Otive Igbuzor, PhD
Founding Executive Director, African Centre for Leadership, Strategy & Development (Centre LSD), Abuja
Presentation at the National Civil Society Organisations Summit 2026 on the theme “Nigeria First”, 2nd October 2026
Protocol.
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,
If we truly want to put Nigeria First, then we must put good governance, the rule of law and human rights first. Good governance is not merely about constructing roads, building infrastructure or announcing government programmes. At its foundation, good governance means that government itself obeys the law. The rule of law means that nobody (not the citizen, not the civil servant, not the legislature and certainly not the executive) is above the Constitution and the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Indeed, government has a special responsibility to obey the law because government is the custodian of the constitutional order.
Nigeria cannot build strong institutions when governments selectively implement laws. We cannot ask citizens to obey the law while public authorities disregard provisions of laws that are inconvenient to them. That weakens institutions, undermines accountability and gradually normalises impunity.
Let me illustrate with two concrete examples.
First is the Public Procurement Act 2007. The Act established two regulatory authorities: the National Council on Public Procurement and the Bureau of Public Procurement. Yet, since the Act was enacted in 2007, successive Federal Governments have failed to constitute the National Council on Public Procurement as contemplated by the law. This is not a minor administrative omission. Procurement is one of the most important areas of public financial management. When a law creates an accountability institution, the executive should not be at liberty to decide whether that institution will exist in practice.
Second is the Police Service Commission. The Commission is a constitutional body under section 153 and the Third Schedule of the 1999 Constitution, while the Police Service Commission (Establishment) Act 2001 specifies its composition. Section 2 of that Act expressly requires representation of women’s interests, the Nigerian press, non-governmental human rights organisations and the organised private sector, with appointments aligned to the federal-character provision of the Constitution. Yet, the Police Service Commission as constituted today has no civil society representative.
These examples raise a fundamental question: What happens to the rule of law when government itself does not implement the laws enacted by the National Assembly?
The danger is profound. Once selective obedience becomes acceptable, constitutional government gradually gives way to government by discretion. Institutions become dependent on personalities rather than laws. Accountability becomes negotiable. Citizens lose confidence in government. And ultimately, human rights become vulnerable because the rule of law is one of the strongest protections against arbitrary power.
This is why civil society must remain vigilant. As we have consistently argued, civil society has indispensable roles in policy advocacy, civic education, citizen mobilisation and accountability.
Our demand should therefore be simple:
- Government must govern according to the Constitution and the law.
- Laws passed by the National Assembly and duly assented to must be implemented faithfully.
- Constitutional and statutory institutions must be properly constituted.
- Human rights must be respected.
- Public officials must be accountable for the exercise of public power.
Nigeria First must mean the Constitution first, the rule of law first, citizens first and national interest first. There can be no sustainable development without good governance; no good governance without the rule of law; and no genuine rule of law without respect for human rights.
Let us build a Nigeria governed by laws, not discretion; by institutions, not personalities; and by accountability, not impunity.
Thank you, and God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
I changed the dash in the first paragraph to brackets and turned the list of demands into bullets. I can undo either, or put it in a Word document if you need a file.