No Legislative Action on Outdated Criminal Laws in Nigeria as House of Representatives is Yet to Review/Amend Criminal Code

In its revised legislative agenda meter, the House of Representatives promised to review and amend outdated and defective laws, including the Criminal and Penal Code, to meet current realities. The review, the house said, was important due to the inconsistency of some parts of the existing laws in the country.

Over the years, there have been failed attempts to review these laws by previous legislators in the country. In 2013, a motion moved by Hon. Samson Osagie, a member of the Assembly to review some of the provisions of the penal and Criminal Codes to  stiff penalties for criminal misappropriation. The amendment and review of these laws have also received the attention of the media and civil society organizations across the country.

The first attempt to review the criminal code in the current House of Representatives was in August 2019 through a House Bill (HB 155) titled Criminal Code Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019 which was sponsored by Hon. Ossai Nicholas Ossai. The bill has since been stalled after its first reading in the floor of the house. According to the lawmaker, the bill seeks to amend the Criminal Code Act, Cap. C38, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 in order to provide for offences and penalties relating to computer misuse and cybercrimes.

Similarly, a Penal Code (Northern States) Federal Provisions Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was presented in the floor of the house by Hon. Solomon Maren Bulus in Augus 2019. The bill sponsored by the lawmaker from Plateau also seeks to amend the Penal Code in order to provide for offences and penalties relating to computer misuse and cyber crimes and other related matters.

In 2020, Hon. Akinola Alabi, a lawmaker from Oyo State re-presented the bill in the floor of the house. The bill titled Criminal Code Act (Amendment) Bill, 2020 which was first read in February 2020 in the Green Chamber has also hit a stumbling block.

Promise: Ensure review and amendment of outdated and defective laws, including the Criminal and Penal Code, to meet current realities

Top on the advocacy priorities of many lawyers and civil society groups is the need to redefine rape and other inconsistent sections to meet in the Criminal Code Act prevailing realities in Nigeria. The definition of rape as stated in Section 357 of the Criminal Code and Section 282 of the Penal Code posited that only women can be raped under the law. Thus, there is need for an amendment that will make crimes like that gender-neutral.

Further, Sections 204 of the Criminal Code Law and Sections 210 of the Penal Code have been at the fore of debates among human right lawyers and activists because of its inconsistency with the section 10 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. “Both sections contradicts the supremacy of the constitution, as they both criminalize public insult on a class of people’s religion,” said Obono Mbasekei, a lawyer based in Abuja.

All told, the review/amendment of the Criminal and Penal Code has not received rapt attention in the House of Representatives despite topping the priority of the legislators in the revised legislative agenda. The bill was also not passed within it set deadline.

Therefore, we rate the promise Broken.

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