The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) has called on the House of Representatives to reject the proposed death penalty bill for drug offenders.
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UNODC criticised the National Assembly for proposing the death penalty for drug offences, stating that the bill is unreasonable.
The Senate has already passed the bill, which now awaits concurrence from the House of Representatives before being presented to President Bola Tinubu for assent.
During the 2024 Media Personnel Training on Anti-corruption, Police Accountability, Wildlife Crime, and Sensitisation on Drugs and Drug Prevention, Treatment, and Care, the UNODC Representative in Nigeria, Oliver Stolpe, made this call in Abuja on Tuesday.
The event was co-organized by the UNODC and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency to train journalists on drug-related crimes, offences, and rehabilitation reporting.
Stolpe said, “Regarding the death sentence for drug traffickers as proposed by the Senate, it now needs to go back to the House. We expect the House of Representatives to vote this down.
Our stance at the UN is clear: we are fundamentally and categorically against the death penalty. From a practical standpoint, it doesn’t make sense.”
This statement comes just four days after the House of Representatives indicated its support for approving the death penalty for hard drug dealers and peddlers when the bill arrives from the Senate.
The Senate had approved the death penalty for those dealing in or importing cocaine, heroin, and other hard drugs into Nigeria.
The proposed capital punishment also applies to manufacturers and traffickers of hard drugs by any means.
