Violent acts attract life imprisonment in Kogi Assembly’s VAPP Bill
Kogi House of Assembly has passed the Violence Against Persons Prohibitions (VAPP) Bill to stem violence in the state.
The bill also prescribes life imprisonment for rapists.
The bill’s passage followed the adoption of the joint Committees on Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Judiciary and Justice’s report on the bill presented at plenary on Monday, in Lokoja.
The Committee on Women Affairs’ Chairman, Abubakar Tanko Mohammed (APC-Kogi/Koto), presented the report and considered clause-by-clause by the legislators at the Committee of the Whole.
The bill provides for the elimination of “Violence in Private and Public Life, Prohibition of all Forms of Violence Against Persons, Protection of Victims and Punishment for Offenders in Kogi State and Other Matters Connected therewith 2021.”
The bill recommends life imprisonment for “aiding and abetting same for the actual offender, upon conviction.”
The private bill sponsored by Challenged Parenthood Initiative (CPI), with support from the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and ActionAid Nigeria (AAN), was first introduced in 2019 to serve as a legal tool for protection, especially of women and girls, from all forms of violence.
In the lead debate on the bill, Mr Mohammed said, “The purpose of the VAPP Bill is to eliminate violence in our private and public lives, to prohibit all forms of violence against persons and to provide maximum protection and effective remedies for the victims and punishment to the offenders.”
According to him, data collated and analysed by the CPI revealed that 85.7 per cent of the voters were victims of violence during the governorship election.
He added, “It was further revealed that existing laws in the state did not cover all forms of the offence. That is why perpetrators of violence were not prosecuted, and many individuals could not access justice.”
(NAN)
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette
Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices
Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”
States
Olubadan lauds Tinubu on release of Oriire kidnap victims, urges rehabilitation
“As a follow-up to this development, the government must ensure that all communities bordering the National Park are fully secure,” he said.
Heading 1
Iran’s new supreme leader vows revenge over father’s assassination by U.S.-Israeli forces
“We pledge to avenge the blood of the martyred leader and all the martyrs of these two wars from the criminal and disgraced killers,” he said.
Heading 4
Trump administration subpoenas New York Times journalists over Air Force One story
The subpoenas seek to compel the reporters to testify before a federal grand jury in Manhattan.
Heading 2
Klopp agrees to replace Nagelsmann as Germany coach
Nagelsmann resigned last week as the men’s national team coach following Germany’s shocking exit from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Health
FG expands cancer funding, local drug production
“We are trying to domesticate expensive treatments by producing much-needed medicines locally and translating global research into action in our clinics,” he said.
Heading 3
Remi Tinubu begs Asake, Davido, Burna Boy to come rescue poor Nigerians from hunger
The first lady stated that buying exotic cars is good, but noted that the singers can still establish foundations to assist the struggling population.
