The Senate has insisted on death penalty for financiers, informants, and other supporters of banditry, kidnappings, terrorism, in the country.
During a debate on amendments to the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022 as proposed by the senate leader, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, also emphasized that anyone who knowingly assists, facilitates, or supports kidnapping operations must pay the ultimate price.
The debate also agreed to place kidnapping under the terrorism framework anywhere in the federation thereby authorizing law enforcement agencies to dismantle kidnapping networks by enabling stronger enforcement.
In his lead debate on Wednesday, Senator Bamidele explained that the amendment was to designate kidnapping, hostage-taking and related offences as acts of terrorism and prescribe the death penalty for such offences without option of fine or alternative sentence; and for related matters.
According to him, the gravity of the prescribed penalty for kidnapping, hostage-taking and other related offences, noting that such offences “have become one of the most pervasive and destructive crimes in our nation today. What were once isolated incidents have escalated into coordinated, commercialised, and militarised acts of violence perpetrated by organised criminal groups .
The senate leader argued that kidnapping “has instilled widespread fear in communities; undermined national economic activities and agricultural output; interrupted children’s education; bankrupted families forced to pay ransom; overstretched our security forces, and claimed countless innocent lives.
A statement by the Directorate of Media and Public Affairs in the office of the Leader of the Senate said Senator Bamidele argued that the patterns of organisation, brutality, and destabilisation associated with kidnapping “now carry all the characteristics of terrorism. It is no longer adequate to treat these acts as ordinary criminal offences. The legal framework must reflect the true magnitude of the threat.”
He noted that classifying kidnapping, hostage-taking and other related offences as acts of terrorism would no doubt empower our security agencies with broader operational authority, intelligence capabilities, and prosecutorial tools available under counter-terrorism law.
Besides designating kidnapping as acts of terrorism, Bamidele said the bill prescribed death penalty “not only for the perpetrators and financiers of such heinous acts, but also for their informants, logistics providers, harbourers, transporters, and anyone who knowingly assists, facilitates, or supports kidnapping operations.
“Attempt, conspiracy, or incitement to kidnap attracts the same penalty. This strong deterrent is necessary to confront kidnapping at the scale it currently operates,” the senate leader pointed out with the resolve to strengthen internal peace and stability.
He also noted that the bill was aimed “at dismantling kidnapping networks by enabling stronger enforcement: By placing kidnapping under the terrorism framework, agencies can pursue asset tracing and forfeiture, intelligence-led operations, inter-agency coordination, swift pre-trial procedures under terrorism laws and disruption of funding and logistics chains.”
While urging his colleagues, Bamidele pointed out that Nigerians “are kidnapped on highways, in schools, in homes, on farms, and in markets. Innocent children, vulnerable women, hardworking men, traditional rulers, travelers, and public servants have all become targets.
“These criminals kill victims even after ransom is paid; subject victims to brutal torture; rape, mutilate, and starve hostages and use ransom proceeds to fund more weapons and more crimes. This is not a mere crime. It is terrorism in its purest form.
“Our moral, constitutional, and legislative duty is to protect Nigerian lives. If an offence repeatedly results in mass murder, mass fear, mass displacement, and systemic destabilization, then the strongest legal sanction becomes necessary
“This Bill does not target communities or innocent persons. It targets violent offenders and the networks that enable them. All prosecutions will still comply with constitutional guarantees, due process, rights to fair trial, and judicial oversight.”
“The menace of kidnapping has reached a level that threatens our national unity, our economic stability, and the safety of every Nigerian family. It is a war on the people, and our response must be firm, decisive, and unambiguous.
