Kidnapping: Kano State Lawmakers Pass Bill Stipulating Life Jail for Culprits

The Kano State House of Assembly on Monday passed into law  a Bill seeking life imprisonment for kidnappers in Kano state.

The Majority leader of the Assembly, Alhaji Yusuf Atta, read the Kidnapping, Abduction and Forced Labour Amendment Bill 2016 before the Assembly.

Speaking shortly after the plenary, Atta said the Committee of the whole House passed the bill after considering its amendment.

“The law has been in existence since 1963, but did not provide serious punishment for kidnappers, therefore, we have to amend it to suit the current situation,” he said.

Atta, who is a member representing Fagge Constituency, explained that any person found guilty of kidnapping would face life imprisonment without an option of fine.

According to him, anyone found guilty of raping or forced labour will also be sentenced to 15 years without an option of fine.

Also, in an interview with newsmen after the passage of the bill, the Chairman of the House Committee on Information, Alhaji Salisu Riruwe, said the amendment was a welcome development.

“With the passage of this anti kidnapping law, we are hoping that the rampant cases of kidnapping and abduction in some areas of the state will come to an end, ‘’Riruwe said.

Culled from: Vanguard Newspaper