The Senate on Wednesday took a major step toward overhauling Nigeria’s anti-kidnapping framework by advancing a proposal that would impose the death penalty on kidnappers and anyone who finances, enables, or provides operational support to them.
The move came as lawmakers debated sweeping amendments to the 2022 Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act aimed at treating kidnapping, hostage-taking, and related crimes as acts of terrorism.
The amendment bill, sponsored by Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, dominated the day’s plenary, drawing input from prominent lawmakers including Adams Oshiomhole, Orji Uzor Kalu, and Minority Leader Abba Moro.
Presiding over proceedings, Senate President Godswill Akpabio oversaw extensive deliberations that ended in unanimous approval for the bill to proceed to the next stage of legislative scrutiny. It has now been referred to the Committees on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters; National Security and Intelligence; and Interior, with a two-week deadline to report back.
During his lead presentation, Bamidele explained that the bill seeks 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.
He described kidnapping as an evolving criminal enterprise that has become coordinated, commercialised and militarised, inflicting profound economic, social, and security damage across the country. He noted that kidnapping now exhibits all the characteristics of terrorism, making its reclassification under counter-terrorism laws necessary.
The proposed amendments would grant security agencies expanded powers, including broader operational authority, intelligence capabilities, and prosecutorial tools to dismantle kidnapping networks.
The death penalty would apply not only to perpetrators but also to their informants, logistics providers, harbourers, transporters, and anyone who knowingly assists, facilitates, or supports kidnapping operations, with attempts or conspiracies attracting the same penalty.
Supporting the measure, Oshiomhole criticized existing deradicalisation programmes, arguing that many offenders eventually relapse into violent crime.
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