FORMER United Nations Human Rights Envoy, Prof. Uchenna Emelonye, has reiterated his call on the National Assembly not to legislate capital punishment for kidnapping, stating that the lawmakers should rather consider providing statutory backing and funding for Anti-Kidnapping Units nationwide, with minimum operational standards and specialised capacity.
 
Speaking during a virtual press conference, Emelonye, who is the CEO of AfriRIGHTS and visiting Professor at Bournemouth University, United Kingdom, said his position on this issue is informed by over two decades of experience as a United Nations Senior Human Rights and Rule of Law Adviser, during which he worked with over 22 governments in conflict/post-conflict settings on counter-terrorism legislation, criminal justice reform, policing and public safety.
  
He noted that the Senate assumes that kidnapping is persisting because of incommensurate penalties, arguing that evidence shows the opposite.
His said: “Kidnapping thrives because detection is weak, intelligence poor, and institutions fragile. Expanding punitive laws distracts from needful reforms and creates false political comfort without improving safety. Amending the Terrorism Act to include kidnapping is legally redundant and risks becoming another symbolic statute that would not satisfy its legislative intent. Nigeria already has overlapping state kidnapping laws, federal criminal statutes, and counter-terrorism frameworks. Adding another capital offence at the federal level duplicates existing provisions without addressing the drivers of crime.”

He added that contrary to the assumption underlying the proposed amendment, Nigeria already has extensive death-penalty provisions across federal and state laws.
 
According to him, at least 14 states in the country have enacted anti-kidnapping laws prescribing the death penalty in aggravated circumstances, including Abia, Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Edo, Enugu, Imo, Kano, Katsina, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Oyo, and Rivers States.
 
“These statutes demonstrate that there is no legal vacuum requiring federal reinforcement and the persistence of kidnapping despite these laws shows that the problem lies not in legislative severity, but in enforcement incapacity,” he noted.

He, therefore, urged the Senate to exercise its legislative and oversight mandate to prioritise institutional strengthening over punitive expansion.

“It should legislate to establish a National Kidnapping Prevention and Response Framework under ONSA to coordinate agencies, standardise protocols, and maintain a national kidnapping intelligence database. It could also resource intelligence-led policing, including regulated access to geolocation, data-fusion centres and lawful surveillance tools. The Senate should consider providing statutory backing and funding for Anti-Kidnapping Units nationwide, with minimum operational standards and specialised capacity.
 
“These and other measures fall squarely within the Senate’s constitutional mandate and offer a credible, lawful, and effective response to kidnapping. Strengthening institutions, not multiplying penalties is the path to durable public safety in Nigeria,” he stressed.