By John Umeh
The Nigerian Senate has passed a landmark amendment to the nation’s Criminal Code, prescribing life imprisonment for anyone convicted of defiling a minor — a decisive move aimed at tightening laws against child abuse and sexual offences.
The bill, titled Criminal Code (Amendment) Bill, 2025, was adopted during Tuesday’s plenary after receiving broad bipartisan support. It follows approval by the House of Representatives, making it one of the most comprehensive child protection reforms in recent years.
Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, who presented the bill, said the amendment was designed to eliminate lenient penalties that embolden offenders and to close gender gaps in the prosecution of sexual crimes.
“The days of five-year sentences for such heinous offences are over,” Bamidele declared. “This bill ensures that anyone found guilty of violating a child faces a life sentence — no plea bargains, no fines.”
Beyond defilement, the Senate also proposed tougher measures for rape offences, introducing a minimum of ten years’ imprisonment for anyone found guilty of forcing another person, regardless of gender, into sexual activity without consent.
According to Clause 2(1) of the bill, any person who unlawfully detains another individual — man, woman, boy, or girl — with the intent of committing sexual assault, whether in a brothel or any other premises, commits a felony punishable by a minimum of ten years in prison.
However, deliberations became tense when lawmakers clashed over a clause addressing abortion-related provisions. The disagreement, which raised both ethical and religious debates, prompted Senate President Godswill Akpabio to suspend consideration of the section and refer the matter to the Committee on Judiciary and Human Rights for further review. The committee is expected to present its report within two weeks.
A brief altercation ensued when Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan attempted to reopen the debate on the suspended clause, drawing a procedural objection from Senator Adams Oshiomhole, who insisted that parliamentary rules barred further discussion on a matter already ruled upon.
Akpabio upheld the objection, saying, “Once a ruling has been made, it stands. I’m not a spirit to know what she intended to say, but the rules must be respected.”
With the bill’s passage, lawmakers and advocacy groups say Nigeria has taken a crucial step toward enforcing stronger deterrents against sexual violence and protecting the nation’s most vulnerable citizens — its children.
