Taraba gov approves death penalty for kidnappers

Darius Ishaku, governor of Taraba state, has signed into law a bill that prescribes death sentence and life imprisonment for kidnappers in the state.

Bala Dan Abu, special adviser to the governor on media and publicity, disclosed this in a statement.

Ishaku assented to the bill on Wednesday in Jalingo after the state assembly passed the act after its third reading.

The state assembly had on Tuesday amended the state kidnapping and abduction prohibition act 2010, to introduce death penalty and life imprisonment for offenders.

The bill, which was sponsored by Peter Abel Diah, speaker of the house, would become kidnapping and abduction prohibition amendment act 2019.

“Under the new law, anybody found guilty of abduction or kidnapping in the state will pay the supreme price for it,” the statement read.

“The law is a product of government’s concern about insecurity in the state, particularly, kidnapping for money which is rampant in the state and other parts of the country.

“In the past two years, not less than 20 persons, some of them government officials had been kidnapped from their homes and on the roads while traveling. It is expected that the new law will go along way in checking this menace.”

During the plenary, the speaker said the new bill, which amended section three, four, seven and eight of the 2010 act, would ensure protection of residents of the state against kidnapping.

He said that the bill stipulates that “any person who kidnap or abduct a person or by any other means of instilling or tricking another person with intent to demand ransom or compel another person to do anything against his wish shall be sentenced to death.”

“The new bill prescribes punishment for violators as; any person who threatened to kill, maim, injure or cause panic in order to compel another person, corporate or government organisation to do or refrain from doing any act committed an offence and is liable on conviction to 20 years without an option of fine,” he said.

“It also said that any person who threaten to kidnap another person by means of phone calls, text messages or any electronic device shall be convicted to 20 years imprisonment without an option of fine.

“And any person who conceals any information or has knowledge as to the existence of a kidnap group or is aware of the planning and execution of a kidnap or abduction without informing relevant security agencies commits and offence and shall be convicted to 20 years imprisonment without an option of fine.”

Taraba is one of the notable states in the country battling with insecurity.

Sanusi Sa’ad, deputy registrar, administration, Taraba State University, was earlier kidnapped on campus.

Susana Jonathan, permanent secretary in the state ministry of water resources, was also abducted from her residence at the ATC area of Jalingo, the state capital.