₦airaland Forum

Lagos lawyer Femi Falana threatened to go to court if the controversial Sexual Offences Bill is passed into law.

A senior advocate of Nigerian expressed shock over the age limit set for potential victims by the bill. With the provided provision the suggested law appears to stipulate that incidents involving children above 11 will not be considered crimes (life imprisonment only for those convicted of having sexual intercourse with under 11 children).

See extracts from his statement published on Premium Times:

“But since the obnoxious provision was illegally inserted by the Committee on Judiciary and Legal Matters without approval, the Senate ought to reverse itself and amend the relevant provisions of the Sexual Offences Bill, 2015. Our Law firm has made a request to that effect.

“Finally, if the Bill is eventually passed into law with its obnoxious provisions we shall not hesitate to pray the Federal High Court to strike it down in view of Article 18(3) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act (Cap A9) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 which has imposed a duty on the Government of Nigeria to ensure the elimination of every discrimination against women and ensure the protection of the rights of the woman and the child, as stipulated in international declarations and conventions.”

Earlier this week Nobel Prize laureate Wole Soyinka added his voice to the outrage surrounding the hectically passed bill. In his letter to the immediate passed Senate the respected Nigerian said: “It strikes me that all the new bill does is empower the clique of paedophiles.”

In a separate development former aviation minister Femi Fani Kayode accused the authorities of legalizing sex with 11-year-old children. - See more at: http://www.exlinklodge.com/2015/06/see-what-femi-falana-have-to-say-about.html#sthash.YBcoBXh8.dpuf

Hmmmm

All those useless law makers, with their useless bills.

Nepa bill even get worth pass am

cc lalasticlala ishilove

Just hear to see comments....

loomer:
All those useless law makers, with their useless bills.

Nepa bill even get worth pass am

Seconded

This bill shaa.

If any body near my 19yrs old sis. Ah go kill am self. Not to talk of 11yrs



Haba

Precisely the point one tried to convey on earlier thread -- https://www.nairaland.com/2363442/chris-anyanwus-bill-did-not/2#34526425

But Falana said the illegal removal of 18 years from the original bill and its replacement with 11 years was inconsistent with the provisions of section 29(4)(a) of the Nigerian Constitution.

The minimum age of 18 years in the original Bill was in line with the provisions of the Child’s Rights Act, 2003 and the Child’s Rights Convention of the United Nations which has been ratified by Nigeria. The Bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Legal Matters for further legislative work. It was that Committee that illegally removed the age of 18 years and replaced it with 11 years.

“The inserted clause is inconsistent with section 29(4)(a) of the Nigerian Constitution which provides that ‘full age’ means the age of 18 years and above.

“Having passed the Bill the Senate cannot plead non est factum in the circumstance. It has to bear full responsibility for the legislative negligence.

Source