Abstract:
History is rife with political actors framing policies to absolve themselves from blame. Such
policies seem integral to governance. Studies have shown how the outbreak of diseases
triggers policy changes from different governments, especially during the present day
coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The ‘Old Testament (OT) leprosy’,
particularly as found in Leviticus 13 and 14, prompted incongruent policies that occasioned
the victimisation and destruction of suspected lepers’ houses. Similarly, some who breached
the COVID-19 lockdown protocols in Nigeria were tortured, victimised or killed. Investigations
on these overbearing regulations are linked to ignorance and autocracy on the part of policy
formulators and implementers. There has likely not yet been any study examining this
phenomenon from the purview of blame-game politics resulting from poor leadership
decisions. This work, therefore, reviewed the government’s policy response to leprosy in the
OT and the Nigerian government’s response to COVID-19 lockdown regulations with the
view to assess their suitability in their specific contexts. The texts of Leviticus 13 and 14 were
examined through the analytical principles of hermeneutics. Documentary method of
research was also used to interpret other secondary data to draw relations between the two
governments’ shifting of responsibilities and victimisation of citizens, both in the OT and
Nigerian societies.
Intradisciplinary and or interdisciplinary implications: This research drew on the
theories in philosophy, ethics, political science, psychology and sociology. The findings
indicated that policy formulators and or implementers employed blame-game constructs
as response to leprosy and COVID-19 both in OT and contemporary Nigerian society,
respectively.
