The Nigerian Senate has passed a landmark bill prescribed life imprisonment for anyone found guilty of sexually defiling a minor, in a move aimed at strengthening the country’s child protection framework.
The bill, approved during Tuesday’s plenary, stipulates that any man or woman who engages in sexual intercourse with a minor will face life imprisonment without the option of a fine.
Leading the debate, Senator Adams Oshiomhole (Edo North) argued that the defilement of minors should be treated differently from rape, describing it as a heinous act that permanently scars victims.
“For a minor, this is a child who cannot give consent and whose life may be destroyed almost permanently. Those involved in defilement should face severe punishment,” Oshiomhole said.
However, Senator Muhammad Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central) proposed a tougher amendment, called for life imprisonment as the mandatory punishment for anyone, male or female, found guilty of child defilement.
“I propose that the punishment for defilement of minors be life imprisonment, regardless of the offender’s gender,” Aliero stated.
The Senate adopted Aliero’s proposal, effectively approved life imprisonment as the penalty for all offenders convicted of sexually abusing minors.
Child sexual abuse is already criminalised under several sections of Chapter 21 of the Nigerian Criminal Code, with the legal age of consent set at 18 years.
A 2015 UNICEF report revealed that one in four girls and one in ten boys in Nigeria have experienced sexual violence before the age of 18, underscoring the scale of the problem.
The bill will now be transmitted to the House of Representatives for concurrence before being forwarded to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for presidential assent.
