Right to cultural development: Real or myth in Nigeria

Abstract

Culture is as old as man’s existence on earth. It is the nucleus of existence and represents the way people dress, eat, greets, dance, speak, worship, celebrate festival, and pronounce words among others. Over the years, some cultural practices in Nigeria have gone into extinction as a result of  modernization, civilization, politics and religion. As a result of the above, crimes that were hitherto rare among the indigenous people of Nigeria  permeated into villages, communities and towns. The consequence of the above is that insecurity began to have multiple effects on all facets of Nigerian  lives. This paper was commenced by digging into reality or otherwise of the right to cultural development in Nigeria. This was done through doctrinal research method. At the end, it was discovered that the challenge to the right of cultural development in Nigeria rests squarely on its non-justiceabilty  under the Nigerian Constitution. This is against the backdrop that African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights had been domesticated in Nigeria, yet  by the superiority of the Nigerian laws, African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act is subject to the provision of  Nigerian Constitution. It was based on the above that recommendations were made to wit: further amendment to the Constitution of the Federal  Republic of Nigeria 1999 by making some community rights like right to cultural development justiceable, extension of the preservation, protection and  promotion of cultural heritage to villages and communities, among others.