LAGOS MAY 4TH5TH (URHOBOTODAY)-The Nigerian Senate has recommended death penalty for kidnappers and tasked state governments to enact laws to enable security agencies to prosecute kidnappers and other crime related offences in their jurisdictions.
The Senate’s resolution followed the report of the Senate Committee on Police, chaired by Senator Abu Ibrahim, who ?informed the lawmakers that N842 million was reportedly demanded as ransom by Kidnappers
During the debate on the report of the committee on Wednesday, the senators adopted a prayer recommending death sentence for abductors in the country.
According to Senator Ibrahim, October 2015 recorded a total of 105 kidnap and sea piracy incidents in 24 states, in which 100 victims were involved, including 26 foreigners.
He said: “The sum of N842,500,000 was reportedly demanded as ransom by kidnappers.
“Some victims’ family/employers purportedly paid a sum total of N28 million.
“Settlement by foreigners is often behind the scene, as families usually go against advice for fear that force? may be applied in rescuing the victim and thereby endangering their lives.
“Recent example is the release of five Polish nationals from costal waters of Rivers and Bayelsa few days ago.?
“In November 2015, a total of 117 incidents were recorded, involving 151 victims spread across 23 states.”
After the presentation by the chairman of the Committee, Senator Adamu Aliero recommended death penalty for kidnappers, while contributing to the report, which was adopted by the Senate.?
In his contribution to the report, the Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio?, recalled when kidnapping escalated in Nigeria.
According to Akpabio, kidnapping escalated in Nigeria when ex-Governor and now Minister of Labour, Dr. Chris Ngige, was kidnapped around 2002.
The Senate also adopted the recommendation of the committee on adequate funding of the security agencies in the country because the practice of envelop budget for security agencies have proved ineffective.
“Efforts should be geared towards creating employment opportunities for our teeming unemployed youths and security agencies should embark on training and retraining of their personnel for effective capacity building,” the Senate said.
The Senate also tasked state governments to enact laws to enable security agencies to prosecute kidnappers and other crime related offences in their jurisdictions.
Male lecturers in tertiary Institutions in the country who are fond of sexually molesting female students would now be in soup as Senators has recommended 5- year jail term without any option of fine for any one found guilty of the offence.
This followed the passage of a bill titled: “Sexual Harassment in Tertiary Institutions Bill 2016”, co- sponsored by the Senators, through first reading in the upper legislative chamber on Wednesday.
The bill according to its lead sponsor, Senator Ovie Omo- Agege on behalf of 45 others, seeks for enactment of an Act to Make Provisions for the Prohibition of Sexual Harassment of Students by Educators in Tertiary Educational Institutions in Nigeria and for Matters Connected Therewith, 2016.
The Senator at a media briefing disclosed that the major intention of the bill was to restore morality, discipline and sanity between male educators and female students in higher institutions in the country.
He explained that the bill when passed, would serve as the needed legal framework of domesticating the honour code existing between lecturers and students in tertiary institutions in United States of America into our own penal code here.
He said after careful and detailed research on the menace of sexual harassment of female students by male lecturers in our Universities and other tertiary institutions, the need for such law was imperative , so as to stop the trend of turning the institutions from citadel of knowledge to prostitution centers.
“After careful and detailed research on the menace over the years, our position as proposed in this bill , is that since the female students being negatively influenced by male lecturers into sexual relationship are not capable of giving voluntary consent to that arrangement, there is need for potent law to stop the immorality”, he said.

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