Lies and Political Deception in Nigeria: Philosophical, Psychological, And Empirical Perspectives On the All-Progressives Congress (APC)

This article explores the philosophical and psychological origins of lying and deception in daily life, grounding its analysis in both classical and contemporary scholarship. Drawing on Michael Lewis’s influential research (Lewis 2015:128), DePaulo et al. (2004:147), and the voices of leading figures like Paul Ekman (1985:42), Robert Trivers (2011:5), and Richard Byrne (Byrne & Corp 2004:1693), the article offers a multidimensional examination of deception as both an adaptive and corrosive force in human affairs. Empirical studies reveal that, on average, people tell two lies per day (DePaulo et al., 2004:147), but those serious lies, those with the greatest consequences, are overwhelmingly reserved for close relationships and political contexts. In the Nigerian context, recent studies show that over 60% of serious political lies are told within party structures, leading to significant internal crises, defections, and public distrust (DePaulo et al., 2004:147; Sambo et al., 2022:81; Ita et al., 2024:115). Additionally, textual analyses of netizen responses to the APC's controversial same-faith presidential ticket revealed that 37.7% strongly agreed and 44.3% agreed that party actions undermine internal democracy and social cohesion (Ita et al., 2024:115; Akpe et al., 2024:222). The narrative is enriched by direct engagement with primary sources and scholarly debates, providing a textured account of how deception operates from the micro-level of personal interactions to the macro-level of institutional politics. A focused case study of the All-Progressives Congress (APC) in Nigerian politics (from its inception to 2026) demonstrates how patterns of lying and deception become embedded in political structures, shaping public trust, democratic processes, and society's ethical landscape.