Nigeria senate dey consider bill to criminalise ransom payment with 15 years imprisonment

Lawmakers for Nigeria Senate dey consider one bill wey go make am criminal offence to pay ransom for victim of kidnap.

Dis na di main informate wey dey inside di Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Bill, 2021, wey one Senator from Imo East (Eastern Nigeria) bin carri comot on 20 May.

Francis Onyewuchi want di law to charge anybodi wey pay ransom money for di release of victims wey dey “wrongfully confined, dey imprisoned or kidnapped” wit crime of felony and possible jail term of “not less dan 15 years”.

Di proposed bill wey don pass second reading, look like say na private individuals e dey target, di lawmakers no mention wetin go happun if na goment pay di ransom or if say na company pay.

Di business of kidnap-for-ransom-money don rise for Nigeria in di last one year, and unlike how di crime dey common for just some places before, recently, jaguda pipo don spread bi business across di kontri.

Still Northern Nigeria dey experience di most serious type of dis kain crime wia since December 2020, jaguda pipo don kidnap over 700 students from five schools.

For Nigeria, most pipo eventually pay ransom for dia family members wey jaguda don kidnap because dem believe say no oda option dey.

Before one World Cup match for 2018, jaguda pipo kidnap di papa of Nigeria international footballer John Mikel Obi.

"I fear say after di match I go just hear say dem don shoot am [papa],” Obi bin tok den. Tori be say e later pay $28,000 for di release of im papa.

Senator Onywuchi blame unemployment with youths as one of di reason why di kidnap-for-ransom-money don rise.

But dis new proposed bill wey be amendment of di Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2013, no differentiate between kidnapping by terrorist and di one by non-terrorist.

Di Nigeria lawmakers say dem want Nigeria to copy di US and UK wey no dey pay ransom money to terrorist.

Although for 2015, di administration of former US President Barack Obama say dem go support families wey wan gada money for di release of dia pesin, because di family don already “go through pain” and e no go good if dem suffer more.

Di Nigeria Senate say dia committee go torchlight which way dem fit carry di proposed bill go forward, den report back within one month.