PATRIOTISM - LOVE OF COUNTRY
Patriotism, as it is generally known and accepted in informed circles, derives from love of country and is invariably reaction from citizens to how well the State discharges its primary rationale for existence – security and welfare of citizens in equitable and transparent manner.  Love is by nature mutual. A country which does not care for its average citizens, naturally should expect no love from them and citizens will never offer such love.  Chapter II Fundamental Objectives &Directive Principles of State Policy (Section 14(2)(b) "The security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government."
Dictionary Definition of Patriotism
 Patriotism is defined in Dictionaries as“zealous love of one’s country.”
Love by definition is an intense feeling of deep affection.
Synonyms of Love are: deep affection, fondness, attachment, endearment, warmth.
Definition of Patriotism in Social Science:
Patriotism as a feeling of attachment and love to one’s own social group – an ethnic group, nation or state – is usually regarded as a noble sentiment. it breeds altruism and engenders attitudes and behaviors promoting well being of the group. In extreme cases, it can also involve self-sacrifice: choosing welfare and safety of one’s national group over one’s own survival.
Patriotism is, in other words, a social force that can keep separate individuals together by turning an array of self-concerned agents into a community and a collection of distant groups into a nation.”
 Love of Country is therefore the summary of all definitions of patriotism. It is common knowledge that love (affection) between two persons cannot be decreed. It is a mutual relationship in which the two are bound in a reciprocal manner, with each giving, the same time it is taking or expecting to take. Patriotism can only therefore be generated by what a State represents to its citizens. It is like the relationship between a father and child and that between man and wife/lover. Was the father/man there for the child/woman when he/she needed support? In the case of a country, the determining factor is the ability of the government to fulfill the primary purpose of government – provision of and concern for the security and welfare of the people, identifiable in a transparent and easily realizable manner, not by nebulous concepts. If the state is unable to provide its aspect of what the English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) best known today for his work on political philosophy, termed ‘Social (political) Contract’, patriotism is truncated.
Government as Ultimate Teacher of the Populace: Nigerians witnessed Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, Nigeria’s Minister of Health, assume citizens’ teacher on Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) during the EVD out-break in Nigeria. Prof. Filled in full the role of government as the ultimate teacher in special circumstances. Without the enlightenment care of the Federal Government, Ebola might have overrun Nigeria. It is worthwhile to note that this was one of the very rare occasions, the Federal Government of Nigeria was able to fulfill its social contract obligations to the people of Nigeria.
The Social Contract Theory in Governance:
The social contract theory of government requires that citizens cede individual freedoms to state with the understanding that they do so for the greater good of many, including themselves. If this is not so, if there is no clear benefit to society as a whole as a return for the loss of the individual rights and freedoms, then the spirit of the tacit agreement the citizen entered into has been broken.
Naturally when the spirit of the tacit agreement the citizen entered into with the state is broken, disorientation against the state follows and no amount of legislation can bring back such citizen’s affection for the state.
Serial and compound breaches of this social contract by government, a God-like party, lead to alienation. Patriotism automatically is withdrawn and no law can compel it.

Misconception of Patriotism by the 2014 National Conference

The 2014 National Conference obviously misconceived what generates love  of Country and was led to make following recommendation on Patriotism:

“In order to place a duty on citizens to embrace national loyalty above sectional or ethnic loyalties” the conference recommended in Section 6.2.1.s/No. 11 that a new Section 42 (3) be inserted in the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria after the existing Section 42 (1) & (2) so as to probably compel all Nigerians to be patriotic (Section 11, page 549): “Every Nigerian citizen shall adhere to the ideology of national patriotism above sectional or ethnic interest.” Here there is a simplistic assumption that patriotism, which naturally flows out of love of country, can be commanded into Nigerians by a law as an ideology. This military disposition to command affection for a country into citizens is consistent with the senseless “indivisible and indissoluble” provision in Section 2(1) of the Constitution intended to enforce unity in Nigeria regardless of malfunctioning governance. Unfortunately this nonsensical provision was repeated in the Conference Annexure titled “Charter for National Reconciliation and Integration.”
 Behind this presumption is an assumption by the oligarchs that ordinary Nigerians are cattle that can be commanded; and that all the oligarch’s subversive activities against love for the Nigerian State are not being observed and noted by the ordinary people.
To think that patriotism can be conjured by mere legislative action of adding Section 42(3) as proposed, is an exhibition of a misconception of human nature. Definitely this flows from military mentality. The soldier swears an oath to lay down his life for the fatherland in return for which the State is supposed to take full responsibility for his life. Unfortunately in non-military live situations, citizens cannot be commanded to love a country that does not care for them.
That close to 500 Nigerian elite could spend five billion Naira of the county's scarce resources to think out how to make Nigeria better, but did not understand the basic relationship between government discharge of its own aspect of the social contract and patriotism, shows how ruinous the Military has been to the mentality of Nigerian political elites. Nigeria citizens are definitely not soldiers that can be commanded to love their country as an ideology.
Nigeria is a disastrous failure in fulfilling any of the two crucial roles it owes to its citizens - welfare and security - as per the Social Contract.
The most provocative aspect of this failure is the flagrant display of impunity by Nigeria’s political class as they show off wealth acquired by abusing their offices and the people’s trust. They further display total rejection of any social contract with citizens. Nigerian citizens seem helpless since the political class at election time would manipulate themselves back to power. Regardless of political party, all Nigerian politicians share evenly in this same irresponsible attitude to their obligations to the privileges they enjoy by holding public offices. In the given circumstances of Nigeria, love-of-country and consequently patriotism, is withdrawn. No law can bring it back. What changes citizens’ attitude is not Law; it is a change to the right attitude of people in government on their obligations and responsibilities to citizens. If they do the right thing, alienation will cease and love-of-country/patriotism would resume.
The patriotism enjoyed by countries in the first world derive from generations of public office holders’ overt effort to meet the terms of the social contract with the citizens - gainful employment (with living wages), standard social security and infrastructure, security, guarantee of fundamental rights including decency in and out of the country and equality under the law as guaranteed by Common Law in an openly equitable judicial system.