The culture of impunity and lack of accountability on the part of the Nigerian politician is simply incredible. While democratic tenets, the world over, presuppose uncompromising observance of the rule of law, accountability and transparency, the Nigerian experience stands as classical case of irony and paradox. Thus, it deserves much more than a cursory interrogation, but an in-depth study. In order to understand the Nigerian situation, many researches have been carried out. Their conclusions point out corruption, weak institutional and legal framework, ethno-religious bias and inclinations as well as lack of free, fair and credible elections as factors responsible for the current state of affairs. However, the believe and indeed the practice of the Nigerian politician to indulge (almost incurably) in magico-spiritual activities in order to invoke powers that will enable them evade justice, mute public scrutiny and veil their culture of impunity and lack of transparency has received little or no deserving scholarly attention. Therefore, this paper examines this phenomenon and its impact on the body polity. Politicians and their allies, members of election petition tribunals, personnel of anti-graft agencies and magico-spiritual jobbers themselves attest to the endemic nature of the phenomenon. Interviews with these constitute primary source for this paper. Laced in segments of this paper are suggestions on how to put the practice of magico-spiritualism on the proper cause that will not be on a coalition part with democracy and good governance in Nigeria.
Keywords: Conflict, Democracy, Good Governance, impunity, magico-spiritual
