RIGHT TO A CLEAN ENVIRONMENT: THE NIGERIA PERSPECTIVE
Abstract:Right to a clean environment is what
every living thing including human beings should enjoy in a society. It is a
right that should not be compromised in any way. People who are not in a
society where this right is enjoyed live in total discomfort and susceptible to
various forms of illnesses and death in the extreme situation. This paper
examines what right to a clean environment is all about and looks at some laws
governing this in some jurisdictions and compared them to what is obtainable in
Nigeria. In Nigeria, right to a clean environment is enshrined in the 1999
Constitution of the Federal republic of Nigeria as amended but it is in Chapter
II of the said Constitution which makes it non-justiciable. Effect of the
non-justiciability is considered together with the impact on the Nigeria
society at large. This paper goes further to make appropriate recommendations.