– to punish and discourage behaviour that is dysfunctional to the well-being of society, and to reward and encourage attitudes and conduct that contribute to the survival of society. However, no human society functions perfectly or strictly in accordance with natural or social designs. There are, therefore, disruptions or dislocations caused by a variety of factors. Among them are:
While moral disruptions due to ineffective education; or damage caused by failure in governance tend to be more gradual and less perceptible, the effects of disruptions caused by severe material needs and cultural invasions are more dramatic and impactful on human character. The first was the transformation from kinship units to larger ethnic groups which gave rise to the emergence of new ethnic and political consciousness that did not previously exist in pre-colonial Nigeria. Thus, the Yoruba of South Western Nigeria, the Igbo ethnic group of the East and the Hausa/Fulani of the North are new formations.
To put your fingers in the till of the local authority would not unduly burden your conscience and people may well think you are a smart fellow … to steal the funds of the union would offend the public conscience and ostracise you from the society. Such solidarity and show of support for a kinsman is never concealed even in situations where particular persons have been proven guilty of serious offences, whether civil or criminal. In Nigeria, if a civil servant or politician embezzles public funds and, in so far as a part of the loot is utilised for the development of his community, that person is, from the point of view of his local community, innocent.