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A state begins to lose its authority when the law is formidable when dealing with the powerless but negotiable when dealing with the politically connected. Nigeria is increasingly flirting with precisely that danger.
Armed with high-resolution scanners, magnifying glasses, and a fresh grievance, politicians comb through the educational credentials of their opponents. They obsess over font kerning, faint seals, and misaligned margins, convinced that somewhere between a crooked signature and an unreadable stamp lies the ultimate prize: getting the Supreme Court to invalidate millions of votes before lunch.
The framers of the United States Constitution expected conflict. They expected ambition. They expected rivalry between the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government.
You arrive at a government office because you need a service. You have your documents. You have paid the required fees. You have probably taken three days off work and spent half your morning fighting traffic.
First, the Palestine Action episode. These were people who did not bother with balaclavas or the theatrical anonymity so beloved of the modern political cosplay set. They targeted warehouses and facilities linked to the supply of arms to the Israeli military. The Labour government, with the practised solemnity of a government discovering its inner authoritarian, reached for the terrorism laws. Proscription followed. Arrests followed. Jail terms followed. Even the barristers who dared to represent them found themselves in the crosshairs. The message was clear: damage property in the service of a cause the government finds inconvenient, and you will be treated as the domestic equivalent of Al-Qaeda, complete with the full legal theatre that accompanies such a designation.
