Nigerian Senate Passes Bill Seeking To Prohibit Payment Of Ransom To Kidnappers

The Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2013, which will prohibit the payment of ransom to kidnappers has passed the third reading at the Nigerian Senate.

Senate Prohibits Payment Of Ransom In Nigeria

The passage of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2013 (Amendment) Bill, 2022, followed the consideration of a report by the Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, and Legal Matters.

The chairman of the committee, Opeyemi Bamidele, who presented the report on Wednesday, said the legislation would discourage the rising spate of abductions witnessed across the country.

“The overall import of this bill is to discourage the rising spate of kidnapping and abduction for ransom in Nigeria, which is fast spreading across the country,” the senator representing Ekiti central said.

“Having policies in place to combat financing of terrorism will surely reduce or eliminate privacy and anonymity in financial and other sundry transactions as it relates to the subject in our society.”

Bamidele said the need for a review of the bill arose from the unfavourable ratings of the financial act task force (FATF) recommendations of Nigeria’s mutual evaluation report.

He said, “The passage of this bill will save Nigeria from being included among countries in the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list with its attendant negative consequences, which might ultimately result in international sanctions that would affect the image of the country in the comity of nations.”

On his part, Senate President Ahmad Lawan said the bill, if passed, would improve the country’s security situation.

“This is one piece of legislation that can turn around not only the security situation in Nigeria, but even the economic fortunes of our country,” Lawan said.

“We have done so much as a government in terms of infrastructural development across all parts of this country, but because the security situation is not the kind of situation that we all want, this tends to overshadow all the tremendous and massive developments in our country.

“I believe that the executive will waste no time in signing this bill into law, and it is our hope that this additional piece of legislation will achieve the purpose for which it has been worked upon by the senate and, indeed, the national assembly and, for the reason for which it would also be signed by Mr. President.”

KanyiDaily recalls that last year, the Senate proposed 15 years imprisonment for Nigerians who pay ransom to kidnappers and kidnappers who receive ransom.