DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ‘FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS’ AND ‘FUNDAMENTAL OBJECTIVES AND DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE POLICY’ IN THE 1999 CONSTITUTION OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA

Abstract

Fundamental Human Rights as enshrined in Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution and Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy in Chapter 2, appear to refer to the same thing on the surface. In the wake of the August 2024 End Bad Governance rallies in Nigeria, the discourse on both the mass and social media space, revealed that many commentators (including well informed human rights activists), often fail to draw a distinction between the two chapters of the constitution. In the zeal to stir up public protests across Nigeria, the general impression created appears to be that citizens have a right to good governance and the right to peaceful protest, and these two are often presented as legally enforceable human rights. This research hypothesis is that Nigerians generally do not understand the fine line between Fundamental Human Rights and Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy as contained in the constitution. To test this hypothesis, the researcher randomly sampled the opinions of more than 500 citizens on the streets of Abuja from different backgrounds. The sampled population proved the research hypothesis right, as none of the persons interviewed understood that the right to good governance and the right to peaceful protest are not human rights under the constitution. The work recommended that there is the need for informed public awareness on the distinction between the two concepts.