Citizenship, Privilege & Responsibility

A BRIEF SUMMARY

BY

AKIN OGUNREKUN [B.SC, Dip.PR]

CITIZENSHIP, PRIVILEGE, AND RESPONSIBILITY

What is citizenship?

This is the status of a person recognized under the custom law of a state that bestows on that person [called a citizen], the rights and duties of citizenship. This may include the right to vote, work and live in the country, the right to own real estate, legal protections against the country’s government, and protection through the military or diplomacy.

A citizen may also be subject to certain duties such as following the country’s laws, paying taxes, or serving in the military.

A person may have dual or multiple citizenship and a person who doesn’t have citizenship of any state is said to be stateless.

HOW CAN ONE BECOME A CITIZEN OF A COUNTRY?

1. By birth- this implies that one automatically becomes a citizen of the country where one is born. e.g. a Nigerian child born in the U.K.

2. By naturalization- this is when a person applies for citizenship of a country after living there for a period of years as stipulated in the country’s constitution. E.g. UK. 10years.

3. Parents are citizens- once the parents are citizens of a country, the children, automatically are also citizens. E.g. Nigerians giving birth to abroad are automatically Nigerians.

4. Marriage- once you are married to a citizen legally, you can apply for citizenship of that country and become a citizen, e,g a Nigerian married to an American.

Nationality- This is often used as a synonym for citizenship in English language.

PRIVILEGE

This is a special right, advantage or immunity granted or available to a certain person or group. This may also refer to legal ethics; a permission granted by law or other rules.

A privilege is a special entitlement to immunity granted by the state or another authority to a restricted group either by birth or on a conditional basis. It can be revoked in certain circumstances.

In modern democratic states, a privilege is conditional and granted only after birth as in the case of the UK, USA, and Nigeria. By contrast, a right is an inherent, irrevocable entitlement held by all citizens or all human beings from the moment of birth.

There are other types of privileges.

1. Executive privilege; immunity from arrest, prosecution, etc.

2. Parliamentary privilege; immunity from arrest in and around the parliament.

3. Cannon law privilege; As in the case of Doctors and Lawyers.

4. Evidence privilege; As in the case of the state witness. Certain privileges are given to such individuals, such as special security protection.

RESPONSIBILITY

This refers to a state or fact of being responsible, answerable, or accountable for something within one’s power, control, or management.

There are different types of responsibilities among which are:

1. Collective responsibility; A section or group can be punished for not doing duties assigned to them. In the same vein, they can be praised and rewarded for a job well done.

2. Corporate social responsibility: This is giving back to society by corporate organizations. This includes but is not limited to the beautification of streets, provision of portable drinking water to rural areas as in the case of Africa, offering scholarships, building health centers for host communities, etc.

3. Diffusion of responsibility: This is a psychological phenomenon in which people are less likely to take action or feel a sense of responsibility in the presence of a large group of people. Essentially, in a large group of people, many may feel that individual intervention is lessened because it is shared by all the onlookers. It is often used to explain the by-standers effect.

4. Legal responsibility: It simply means under the law, you are responsible for certain things [ you are accountable, you have to take care of, you are obligated]

5. Media responsibility: This is a term for the belief that mass media have a basic responsibility to help strengthen and support democratic processes.

6. Duty: This is what you are expected to do. It is your duty to pay your taxes.

7. Obligation: You are expected to stand up as a sign of respect when the National anthem is being rendered.

8. Personal responsibility: Taking responsibility for your actions and bearing the consequences of such actions.

9. Professional responsibility: As a professional, you are expected to obey rules and regulations guiding the profession. e.g. medical Doctors, Engineers, Lawyers, etc.

10. Social responsibility: Do not hide criminal elements.

11. Cabinet collective responsibility: As in the case of the parliamentary system of government.