The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Act was revised by the Senate on Thursday to allow for life in prison for anybody convicted of storing, transporting, or hiding hard narcotics and other illegal substances.
After receiving approval from the majority of senators, the amendment was discussed during the plenary, which was chaired by Barau Jibrin, the deputy president of the Senate.
The change was made in response to the two chambers of the National Assembly’s conference committee’s suggestion regarding Section 11 of the NDLEA Act.
The Senate version of the amendment called for the death sentence for drug traffickers, but the House of Representatives just passed an amendment to the NDLEA bill that calls for life in prison.
In order to reconcile their versions, the two houses established a conference committee.
Tahir Monguno, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, and Legal Matters, informed his colleagues at the plenary that the Senate will approve the House’s proposal that would sentence drug traffickers to life in prison.
The conference committee’s chairperson, Mr. Monguno, clarified that more than 900 people incarcerated in drug-related crimes will be put to death if the National Assembly approves the death penalty.
In order to lessen the impacts of drug use and trafficking in the nation, he urged his colleagues to endorse the resolution.
Following the presentation, the resolution was put to a vote by Deputy Senate President Barau Jibrin, and the majority of senators voted in favour of it.
With the amendment, the section now reads, “Anybody who is unlawfully involved in the storage, custody, movement, carriage or concealment of dangerous drugs or controlled substances and who, while so involved, is armed with any offensive weapon or is disguised in any way, shall be guilty of an offence under this Act, and liable on conviction to be sentenced to life imprisonment.”
After that, President Bola Tinubu would receive the revised bill and sign it into law. The president has not indicated that he will reject the change proposed by the APC-controlled parliament.
