Utilitarian and retributive arguments for the death penalty under the Nigerian criminal justice system : towards the justification and desirability of the death penalty in a relational society

Abstract

While so much has been said about the moral justification of the death penalty in Western literature, the African perspectives in that regard are still emerging. As a practical endeavor, the death penalty is necessarily applied under the respective criminal justice systems around the world. Here, also, discourses on the Western and American experiences dominate the literature. In Nigeria, scholars proffer what might be Igbo and Yoruba thoughts on the moral justification of the death penalty. This is not the case with Hausa, one of the largest cultural groups in Nigeria. This thesis examines the utilitarian and retributive theories and arguments on the one hand, and the African thought with its communitarian outlook, on the other. It interrogates the Hausa world-view/cultural practices and proposes a Hausa perspective on the moral justification of the death penalty. One important aspect that discourses on punishment neglect is the question of the desirability of the death penalty under specific societal conditions. As a further consideration, thus, the thesis considers the question of the desirability of the death penalty in a relational society. The thesis shows that the death penalty in Nigeria is generally morally indefensible (in utilitarian and deontological terms) because the criminal justice system is necessarily incapable of doing away with arbitrariness, punishing the innocent and due process violations. It is also morally wrong from the perspective of the Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa because it contradicts the sacredness of life and the relational principle they uphold. The thesis argues that the death penalty is not desirable in the well-ordered society that Rawls projects. Among others, because of the issue of practical application that Rawls’ idea of a well-ordered society faces, the thesis further shows the undesirability of the death penalty using the African relationality as an alternative framework. Keywords: Death Penalty, Moral Justification, Utilitarianism, Retributivism, Nigerian Criminal Justice System, African World-view, Relationality, Hausa Moral Thought, Desirability and Well-ordered Society