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THE ETHICO-POLITICAL IMPLICATIONS OF LEGITIMACY 

CRISIS ON DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN NIGERIA 

 

Maraizu Elechi, PhD & Jaja, Ibifuro Robert 
Department of Philosophy 

Rivers State University 

Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria 

Email: drmaraizuelechi@yahoo.com 

Phone: 08038954871 

Abstract 

Legitimacy is a virtue of political systems and governments. It is integral to 

the defining lineament of democracy and democratic governance. The demand 

for legitimacy has increased as democracy gained traction over the years in 

Nigeria. Although Nigeria practices democracy, it faces a lot of legitimacy 

crisis resulting in a lack of support and obedience, and in most cases, an 

outright rejection of government and its authorities by the citizenry. The 

implications of these are that it poses a great danger to the political system and 

society in general as the citizens often resort to protests, civil disobedience, 

lawlessness, and crime. The inability of the leaders to gain the acceptance of 

the people also slows down the pace of development and growth of the 

country because the absence of legitimacy does not create the political 

atmosphere for citizens’ participation and exchange of ideas, which are crucial 

for national development and citizens’ happiness. This paper, therefore, 

adopts critical and analytic methods in appraising the concept of legitimacy to 

expose its significance in a democratic regime. It provides explanations and 

solutions to the severity of the legitimacy crisis in Nigeria and contends that 

legitimacy, which is the people’s mandate to govern is an essential moral 

requirement that validates authorities and governments. In conclusion, the 

paper proposes that Nigerian leaders should earn legitimacy by constitutional 

democratic means whereby the exercise of power will reflect a genuine 

justification of the mandate of the people for them to govern.  

 

Keywords: Legitimacy, legitimacy crisis, national development, democratic 

governance, citizenry 

 

Introduction 

Legitimacy is the moral foundation for political power and authority. A 

legitimate government can be a de facto government and a de jure 

government. This means that a legitimate government can be derived in two 

ways as mentioned above. A de facto government is a government that is 

legitimized not only by the people’s consent but also by the lack or absence of 

opposition in the government. Lack or absence of opposition in a government 

is understood, politically speaking, as implied consent and as such considered 

as constituting political legitimacy. The role of the opposition in a government 



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cannot be underestimated especially in leading constructive and unbiased 

criticisms against a government in power. The main benefit of which is for the 

potent and timely delivery of the requirements of good governance to the 

people much more than showing that the government in power is failing or 

has failed. De jure government, on the other hand, is government by law, 

which is a legal government, that is, a government of law and by law, which is 

equally a legitimate government. This means that legitimacy can be conferred 

by the people as well as by law. A democratic government, for instance, is the 

only form of the political system that can be characterized as both a de facto 

and a de jure government at the same time. This is because it is founded on 

the people's consent and equally based on the rule of law. A genuinely 

democratic government is formed based on mutual respect for the human 

person, majority rule, and a high sense of responsibility and responsiveness to 

the people. (Nnamdi 36-37). This is why democracy is aptly defined as the 

'power of the people'.In his reflection on democracy as it relates to the consent 

of the people, Elechi’s records that, 

It is now regarded as a form of government in 

which the people rule themselves either directly 

or indirectly through their representatives. It is a 

political system in which the eligible people in a 

polity or society participate actively not only in 

determining the kind of people that govern them 

but also in shaping the policy out-put of the 

government. This means that democracy 

anchors its authority on the express will of the 

people. Consent and participation of the 

governed are therefore essential in a democracy, 

its understanding, and practice (166).  

 

Legitimacy brings about a peaceful atmospheric condition for governance 

because such government is accommodated by cooperation, mutual 

participation, and mutual exchange of ideas to bring about better living 

conditions in the state.The fact is that government is complemented by 

followership and followership presupposes the consensual relinquishment of 

individual powers to a group of persons granted the authority to make binding 

decisions in a civil society. Hence, legitimacy as a virtue of political systems 

emanates from followership. It lies at the heart of all political discourses and 

determines much political competition in both developed and less developed 

societies (Clement,15). The efficacy of power and authority exercised in any 

system of government is hinged on legitimacy, given that the privileges and 

rights of political office holders are not arbitrary, but conferred upon by the 

followers. Legitimacy is the basis of stable government: all governments seek 

legitimacy. How they achieve it and keep it is essential to the study of a 

democratic political regime.According to Nnamdi, the government can be said 



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to be legitimate when it is willed by the people it governs, which can be 

achieved only in a voluntary agreement. The issue of agreement here strikes 

the thought that legitimacy is like a social contract by which the basis of 

political power is founded and derived on the agreement, consensus, or 

consent of the citizens. Miller records it thus: “At the heart of social contract 

theory is the idea that legitimate government is the artificial product of the 

voluntary agreement of the moral agent – that there is no such thing as 

‘natural’ political authority” (478-9). 

 

The democratic system of government has no doubt gained traction over the 

years because one of the essences of democratic theory is the legitimate 

governing authority (Scharpf 6). This is as a result of the rule and consent of 

the majority. One can argue that the seeming legitimacy of authorities in a 

democratic system of government is one of the reasons the democratic system 

of government has gained popularity over the years. For Locke, the consent of 

the majority (representative of the whole) which is a feature of legitimacy is 

foremost to democracy. According to Dahl, democracy and legitimacy are 

inextricably connected. The relationship between legitimacy and democracy is 

such that a democratic government must be legitimately derived from the 

people and the rule of law. It is the people that grant the right to rule if such a 

government is to be considered legitimate. Such right or mandate to rule must 

be grounded in the common good and shared moral evaluations (Gilley 5). An 

agreement, consensus consent, and participation are therefore preconditions 

for true and valid legitimacy. Consent is therefore understood as a concrete 

and practical endorsement or acceptance which is demonstrated through a 

voluntary and continued participation of the citizen in the public affairs 

(Nnamdi 23). Hannah Arendt records that, 

… we may say that consent, not in the very old 

sense of mere acquiescence, with its distinction 

between rule over willing subjects and rule over 

unwilling ones, but in the sense of active 

support and continuing participation in all 

matters of public interest… (85). 

 

A system that is based on the consent and participation of the people 

guarantees a legitimate government. However, it appears the Nigerian 

situation holds otherwise. Nigeria practices a democratic system of 

government yet faces legitimacy crises. In the exercise of power, Nigerian 

political office holders disregard the fact that power is limited by the 

sovereignty of the people and the claim of consensus. The questions, 

therefore, are:  how did a democratic state like Nigeria come to face a 

legitimacy crisis? What are the effects of the legitimacy crisis on Nigeria’s 

democracy? This paper shall attempt to critically answer these questions and 



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subsequently make recommendations to solve the legitimacy crisis faced in 

Nigeria. 

 

Conceptual Discourse of Legitimacy: The Right to Govern 

Democratically 

The prominence of legitimacy in a regime and political discourse in general 

spurs the urge to carry out a conceptual discourse on the concept and to 

unravel its significance in a state. Derived from the Latin word legitimus, 

meaning lawful, legal, and legitimate, its definition has changed constantly 

and is used in a wide range of different contexts (Delbruck 2-3). Here, 

legitimacy will be seen as the right to democratically govern. Legitimacy as 

the right to govern assumes that consent plays a major role therein (Cutis 10). 

To fully grasp this, a clear understanding of the term right is necessary. Right 

is the freedom or entitlements accorded individuals based on natural laws, the 

legal system, or social convention. The right to govern is not natural, it is 

borne out of a social convention. It is the governed that confers on the 

governor this right. This is the case in all systems of government including the 

monarchical system of government where political power is inherited. The 

rights, immunity, and authority of a monarch are not natural as it always 

seems. It is bestowed by the people who have given their consent to be ruled 

by a particular lineage that gives a monarch power. Monarchs can lose their 

power if the people withdraw their consent. There are several instances of 

abolition or revolution against monarchs that give credence to this claim. For 

instance, Napoleon III, the last monarch to rule France was overthrown and 

the monarchical system of government was replaced with a republican 

government as the French lost faith in their monarchy. 

 

It is important to note here that rights have limitations including the right to 

govern. The right to govern although gives governments the authority to make 

and enact binding decisions, it is not without boundaries. Political authorities 

are expected to express the rights of governance within the dictates of the 

constitution (written or unwritten) or claim of consensus. The governmental 

rule is made rightful, both in its claim to authority and in its exercise of 

authority (Fredrick 3-25). When public office holders act in discordance with 

the constitution or the consensus in their claim to authority or their exercise of 

it, the regime is faced with a legitimacy crisis.  If the right to govern is a social 

construct, that means, it can be deconstructed. That is to say that the right to 

govern is not abiding, but susceptible to change. A regime can have 

legitimacy at one point but lose it at some point. For instance, Robert 

Mugabe's regime in Zimbabwe had legitimacy when he was first elected 

president in 1987. However, his regime in the later years faced a legitimacy 

crisis as opposed to his sit-tightism (a refusal to leave office, after his tenure 

elapsed) grew until he was ousted from office in a coup. Legitimacy emanates 

from the people and the law. Hence, it serves as a check on the powers of any 



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regime, including that of monarchs. Today, the constitutional monarchy has 

gained traction, as the popularity of the notion of the absolute monarchy 

declined substantially after the French revolution, which promoted theories of 

government based on popular sovereignty. 

 

For, to each right corresponds a duty (Cutis 11), the right to govern is not 

different. In the right to govern, the duty goes two ways: the duty of the 

government and that of the governed. The government has to rule while the 

people have to obey. The people complement their consent with civil 

obedience, respect, loyalty, and support. Hence, civil obedience is one of the 

features of a legitimate regime. The power of perceived legitimacy to compel 

obedience is so great that it frequently makes people act against their self-

interest. Legitimacy compels civil obedience so much so that the citizenry acts 

following the laws even when there is no authority there to compel obedience. 

For instance, most road users waive their self-interest and obey the traffic 

light (laws) even when there is no authority to compel obedience. Perhaps the 

greatest evidence of the role legitimacy plays in fostering obedience to the law 

can be seen in situations where that sense of legitimacy is lost on a large scale. 

An instance is the uprisings in America. People have flouted the lockdown 

order and restrictions on social gatherings to protest against police brutality 

and racism. The African-Americans are displeased with the constitutions or 

the laws of the land. They are however concerned with the legitimacy of the 

government that enact these laws, especially the police and law enforcement 

agency of the executive arm of the government that have misused their powers 

times and time again. 

 

We have argued that civil disobedience can manifest or result in a regime 

without legitimacy However, it is not always clear if the existence of 

obedience itself discloses legitimacy or whether legitimacy rests on additional 

sources of validation (Fredrick 23). Civil obedience might also be present in a 

regime without legitimacy. Nazi Germany is a clear instance. During Hitler’s 

regime which was a dictatorship, civil obedience was a feature as citizens that 

opposed Hitler were imprisoned or killed. Despite the seeming civil obedience 

in Hitler’s regime, the regime passes as a copious example of an illegitimate 

government. Civil obedience as pointed out above does not necessarily 

indicate legitimacy. Legitimacy rests on an additional source of validation, 

which is free will. Thus, a dictatorship or totalitarian government cannot boast 

of legitimacy.  

 

Legality and Legitimacy: A Comparative Review 

This paper recognizes the complexity and significance of the debates about 

the relationship between legality and legitimacy in political discourse. To 

carry out a contrastive review of the concepts, it is proper we differentiate 

between legality and legitimacy by a way of definition. Legality refers to what 



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fits within the law and is compliant with a legal framework (Jerez 15).Legality 

stipulates the dos and don’ts of the society based on the laws or constitution. 

Legitimacy, on the other hand, involves social acceptability hinged on a 

consensual agreement of the people. This is why Arendt avers that the moral 

obligation of the citizen to obey the laws is traditionally derived from the 

assumption that he either consented to them or was his own legislator (84). 

Legitimacy also limits the actions of people. Itis directly linked to the people. 

For something to be said to be legitimate it must be borne out of the social 

convention. Legality on the other hand is what fits within the framework of 

the law. Laws are not necessarily social conventions. Some laws do not garner 

social acceptability. For instance, according to Nida, in India child marriage is 

illegal but in Rajasthan it is legitimate and still, people get their children 

married. Legitimacy reinforces legality. Laws that are odds with social norms 

are likely to be unenforced. According to the United Nations Policy Brief 

2008, tax as an example, evasion is not seriously penalized in Nigeria because 

it is perceived as normal, whereas in the United State of America it is a 

serious crime. In extreme circumstances, legitimacy can introduce 

constructive flexibility in international law, as illustrated by the 1999 Kosovo 

intervention. The decision of NATO to launch an attack against the Federal 

Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) contravenes the international norm of non-

intervention. However, it was widely accepted as legitimate as it was 

allegedly done to prevent the ethnic cleansing of Kosovar Albanians. 

Legitimacy needs law as much as the law needs legitimacy—law cannot be 

respected if seen as illegitimate, while appeals to legitimacy must be based in 

law to prevent opportunism. 

 

Political Legitimacy and Democratic Governance in Nigeria 
Legitimacy is a virtue every government and authority seek. The popularity of 

democracy, a system in which sovereignty lies in the hands of the people has 

increased the demand for legitimacy. However, a lot of countries especially 

African countries face a legitimacy crisis. Nigeria is one of such countries. 

The question raised is how is it that Nigeria, a democratic nation faces a 

legitimacy crisis? The answer to this question cannot be exhausted in a single 

sentence. The Nigerian situation is a peculiar one. As the nature, dimension 

and severity differ from other systems. The legitimacy crisis in Nigeria is not 

borne out of a crisis of change from tradition to modernity as Lipset notes. It 

is a bit more complex than that in the Nigerian context. According to Fredrick,  

The concept of legitimacy as a political concept 

is inherently complex in that it involves at least 

three distinguishable components: the electoral 

(constitutional) right to rule; the procedural 

(normative) rightfulness in the exercise of rule; 

and the substantive (teleological) rightness in 

the ends of rule (26). 



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Each of these components encompasses problems of its own in Nigeria. In the 

area of the electoral constitution, which involves the processes of power 

acquisition, if a democratic government is to be seen as legitimate, the 

people's mandate must be freely given not stolen or taken by force. The 

Nigerian electoral system has failed in the enhancement of political 

legitimacy. The Nigerian electoral system has been bastardized as elections 

are marred by widespread irregularities such as logistics failure, misconduct, 

and poor technical know-how of Independent National Electoral Commission 

(INEC) ad-hoc staff and security lapses. The people’s mandate has been stolen 

time and time again. Late President Umaru Musa Yaradua admitted that the 

elections that produced him as president "had shortcomings" and promised 

electoral reforms to correct the system (Abdul-Rahman, 27). Unfortunately, 

the electoral process has worsened over the years. The political gladiators in 

Nigeria have militarized the elections, not for security reasons but to ensure 

voter's apathy as well-meaning Nigerians are not willing to get in harm's way 

in a bid to cast votes that probably might not count. These vices present in 

almost all elections held in Nigeria has negatively influenced the acceptability 

of the government by the people. Other than electoral malpractices, ethnic and 

religious sentiments have influenced the conferment of legitimacy on most 

administrations in Nigeria. Hillary aptly captures the Nigerian situation as she 

rightly notes that, 

Ethnicism has taken the center stage of Nigeria's 

political system and has always acted as a threat 

to the survival of its democratic system. It 

comes more dreadfully fierce when various 

ethnicities begin to complain bitterly over 

political marginalization, from Nigeria's new 

and most lasting democracy since the year of 

independence in 1960 (81). 

The divide between ethnic and religious lines is made very obvious in the 

Nigerian political environment where it ideally should have no place. 

Nigerians especially gullible ones barely legitimize an administration led by a 

person outside their ethnic or religious group. The Muslim people of the 

northern part of Nigeria are largely unsupportive of a president who is a 

southerner and a Christian. This practice is done for the notion of 'born to rule' 

ingrained in the mind of an average northerner. On the other hand, the 

Christian southerner sees the northerner as commonly unexposed and as such 

unfit for office. These stereotypes and prejudices have contributed to the 

legitimacy crisis faced in the political system of the nation. The administration 

of former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan faced a legitimacy crisis as the 

Hausas were largely against his administration not as a result of 

underperformance or marginalization of their group but for merely being an 

“outsider”. In the same vein, the Buhari led administration is faced with a 

legitimacy crisis as the southerners are largely against the government not 



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only due to underperformance but the mere fact of being a northerner. Every 

regime in Nigeria is likely to face a legitimacy crisis as there is hardly a 

consensual acceptance of a government. Ethnicism present in Nigeria's 

political environment is propagated by corrupt politicians who being aware of 

the ethnic and religious sentiments of the people appeal to it. The notion 

peddled by Nigerian politicians is that the development or otherwise of a 

people is based on the ethnic or religious affiliation of the political office 

holder. These unfounded lies told during political campaigns have motivated a 

legitimacy crisis borne out ethnicism. 

 

Abuse of political power by political office holders in Nigeria has also 

bolstered up the legitimacy crisis faced in the Nigerian state. Nigerian 

politicians have abused the power and authority of their offices for their 

aggrandizement or that of their ethnic group. The rule of law has not been 

held in high esteem as most of the decisions and actions of the political office 

holders are contrary to the dictates of the constitution. Despite the recognition 

of the universal declaration of human rights, there are still several instances of 

abuse of human rights in Nigeria. Nigerian politicians have misused the right 

to govern conferred on them by the people to violate the rights of the people. 

This is because contrary to democratic ethos, the state is still largely 

authoritarian in leadership and security operations (Akhaine et al. 103).Police 

brutality is currently a serious menace to the Nigerian state. Respect for 

human rights is at the lowest point in Nigeria. Also, the right to an adequate 

standard of living is grossly violated in Nigeria. Most of the economic policies 

have had negative consequences for the citizenry. In addition to lack of jobs 

for young school leavers, insecurity and shortage of power supply have 

rendered most entrepreneurial efforts null and void. The ripple effect is an 

increase in crime rate and poverty. According to the United Nations 

Development Programme (UNDP) document of 2011, over 70 percent of the 

populace lives below 1 dollar per day. The poverty rate soars as the years go 

by. This is regrettably caused by corruption and the embezzlement of funds by 

public officials. The misuse and abuse of power by Nigerian political office 

holders and its resultant impoverishment of the Nigerian people has spurred 

revolutionary movements. However, the government has employed 

unconstitutional means to stop these revolutions in their track. The illegal 

detention of activists leading revolutions is a violation of the people's right to 

self-determination. The recent case of Omoleye Sowore is a clear depiction of 

this violation. Sowore who called for a revolution of the people against the 

government was still being held in custody even after a court had ordered for 

his release. The many instances of usurpation and neutralization of the powers 

of the judiciary by the executive arm rampant in this current administration 

led by President Buhari are typical of a tyrannical government. The judiciary 

is the hope of the common man; its freedom signifies the freedom of the 

ordinary people. If the powers of the judiciary are neutralized or usurped then 



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the freedom of the people is compromised. Without the freedom of the 

populace to self-determination, the Nigerian government cannot boast of 

legitimacy. 

 

The Ethico-Political Implications of Legitimacy Crisis 
Legitimacy crisis presupposes a decline in the confidence of the populace in 

the government of the day. The ripple effect of this lack of confidence and 

distrust in the government is civil disobedience. Weyler contends that, 

...history shows us that civil disobedience is 

often necessary when the relatively weak face 

the relatively strong. When power is out of 

balance, as in most cases of social justice 

advocacy, civil disobedience may be one of the 

few tactics left for citizens. And thus, the weak 

have confronted the strong throughout history: 

The Quakers, Gandhi, the Chipko movement, 

the suffragettes, labour movements, Martin 

Luther King, Rosa Parks, Mairead Corrigan 

Maguire, Nelson Mandela, Aung San Suu Kyi, 

Greenpeace, and countless others. Peaceful 

confrontation, not just words, creates social 

change (8). 

There have been instances of civil disobedience in Nigeria by different groups 

and movements; however, these groups and movements have culminated in 

violence and loss of lives. The Movement of the Survival of the Ogoni People 

(MOSOP) is an example of civil disobedience that went awry as thousands of 

Ogoni sons and daughters lost their lives. Other than the large scale of 

disobedience experienced in Nigeria, there are small scales instances 

noticeable in every sphere, nook, and cranny of the Nigerian state. Indeed, 

without legitimacy, even the most general legislation is impossible to explain. 

The legitimacy crisis faced in Nigeria has prompted the citizenry to question 

and disobey the basic laws of the state. The attitude of the Nigerian people to 

the measures put in place for the COVID-19 pandemic is a case in point. The 

deep distrust the Nigerian people have for the government has made them 

doubt the existence of the virus in Nigeria. They believe it exists in other 

countries but see it as a ploy for Nigerian leaders to embezzle funds in the 

country. This has endangered the lives of virtually every Nigerian residing in 

the country. Civil disobedience is neither condemned nor commended directly 

(Adelakun17). It can bring about positive change but at the same, it can 

destabilize the growth and development of a state. 

 

The tripod of corruption, ethnicity, and religious intolerance are the 

consequence of the cyclical legitimacy crisis and the underdevelopment of 

Nigeria. An illegitimate government cannot be said to emanate from the 



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people. It is the people that confer the legitimacy of a government in a 

democracy otherwise the government will suffer rejection from the people. 

Disapproval or rejection of a government is the foundation of other moral and 

political issues like the breakdown of law and order, instability, violence, 

youth restiveness, and terrorism. The legitimacy crisis is founded on the lack 

of good government because there is no good governance when a government 

is not derived from the people and when it is not participatory as well as 

promote rule of law, even when such government brings about economic or 

material development. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) 

document of2012 records that: 

'Good' or 'democratic governance exists when 

the authority of the government is based on the 

will of the people and is responsible for them. It 

is when open democratic institutions allow full 

participation in political affairs and when human 

rights protections guarantee the right to speak, 

assemble and dissent. It is when government 

and governmental institutions are pro-poor, 

promoting the sustainable human development 

of all citizens (1). 

Good governance is founded on transparency, accountability, protection of 

human rights, and the promotion of legitimacy. It brings corruption to a 

minimal and enhances national development. The fact is that corruption 

challenges the legitimacy of a democratic authority or government because it 

breeds the poverty of the people. Illegitimacy breeds poverty through 

corruption, armed robbery, and kidnapping for ransom. It gives rise to 

tyranny, oppressive tendencies, and irresponsibility in governance. It is, 

indeed, very bad and unacceptable for one to be forced on the citizens against 

their will in the name leadership or governance. Such a person will not gain 

the respect, loyalty, and support from the people. A good government is not 

only one that brings about economic development but one that is all-inclusive, 

participatory, consensus-oriented, responsive, equitable, and transparent. It is 

first and foremost one that derives its mandate to govern from the people since 

it is an act of illegality no to do so. Illegality and illegitimacy are acts of 

corruption, the crudest forms of corruption in that matter that constitute 

impediments to rule of law, justice, equity, fairness, and public accountability. 

Corruption destroys democracy, good governance, and brings national 

development to a standstill. It is one of the widespread phenomena among the 

political class in Nigeria that has brought shame, embarrassment, and ridicule 

to the country over the years with the international community even with the 

institution of a democratic system of government. Again, the United Nations 

Development Programme (UNDP) document of 1997 avers that, 

… the totality of the exercise of authority in the 

management of a country's affairs, comprising 



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of the complex mechanisms, processes, and 

institutions, through which citizens and groups 

articulate their interest, exercise their legal 

rights, and mediate their differences. It 

encompasses the political, economic, legal, 

judicial, social and administrative authority and 

therefore includes government, the private 

sector and civil society (9).   

The citizens or the people are the State or what Maritain refers to as the 

government. This is to say that the people constitute the government, which 

must, in turn, be accountable to the people. According to him “The people are 

the very substance, the living and free substance, of the body politics. The 

people are above the State, the people are not for the State, the State is for the 

people” (26). Maritain believes and rightly so that the common good of the 

people is the final aim of the state. The foundation of common good and 

happiness is embedded in the idea of collectivity which is the moral product 

of legitimacy. 

 

Conclusion 

History shows that legitimacy is not abiding, it is a virtue of governance that 

needs constant work for it to be retained. Although the Nigerian political 

environment is currently replete with a legitimacy crisis, it can still be 

salvaged. Democracy is still the best form of government for the country if it 

is practiced in its true essence. Legitimacy emanates from the people therefore 

it is logical that the panacea to legitimacy crisis should also come from the 

people. First, the Nigerian populace should unlearn or emancipate themselves 

from the whims of the corrupt politicians and leaders because the mandate to 

govern a people is betrayed when the governor or leader engages in the act of 

corruption to enrich himself rather than provide adequate leadership that will 

benefit the people and develops the nation. The ethnicity crisis that is 

obviously at the center stage of politics in Nigeria should be taken to the 

sidelines. In choosing our leaders, excellence and competence should be 

placed over religious and ethnic affiliations. The leaders on the other hand are 

acquired to exercise power for the good of the citizens bearing in mind that 

the right to govern is not natural, it is rather a social construct that can also be 

deconstructed. Legitimacy is the ultimate justification of political power. With 

it, governance is made easy as civil obedience and loyalty are guaranteed. In 

the same vein, the consequences of illegitimate government are grave on the 

general wellbeing of the people and the development of a nation. Legitimacy 

cannot be attained through Machiavellian principles; therefore, Nigerian 

leaders need to earn it through constitutional democratic means since 

legitimacy justifies political authority. 

 

 



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