Collective paralysis, the bystander effect and the crisis of passive citizenship in Nigeria 

    Ogie Eboigbe | YSOT | Apr 07, 2026    
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Have you been at a police checkpoint or a traffic light junction when a citizen has been stopped and accused of an infraction you know was incorrect? In several cases, many people present at the scene will simply watch, even when they know that the law enforcement officers are wrong and the citizen did not break the law. However, you and others at the scene say nothing to help the hapless citizen, call out the security agents, or challenge their false accusation. The matter is not helped by the fact that everyone now has a mobile phone, which they prefer to use to record the scene instead of standing up to defend the citizen. 

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