NIGERIA: NASS APPROVES DEATH SENTENCE FOR TERRORISTS

December 13, 2012: In Nigeria, the National Assembly approved the death penalty for acts of terrorism following the recommendations of a Conference Committee's report of both houses.
The Committee's report harmonised the different versions of the Amendment Bill passed by both the upper and lower legislative chambers.
The Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011 (Amendment) Bill, 2012, was passed by the House of Representatives on Oct. 11 and by the Senate on Oct. 17.
The legislators' resolution of death sentence for terrorists was contained in the conference committee report of both chambers of the National Assembly, which harmonised a Bill for an Act to amend the Terrorism (prevention) Act 2011 and for other related matters.
In the report read on the Senate floor, chairman of the conference committee, Sen. Mohammed Magoro, said that "Clause 2 amends Section 1 of the principal Act which deals with "prohibition of acts of terrorism" in general. The senate version prescribed life imprisonment for offences under this clause while the House version prescribed death penalty. After deliberations, the House version was adopted by the conference committee."
"Equally, in Clause 2, a new section - 1A, was inserted immediately after Section 1 of the principal Act. This new provision deals with national coordinating bodies in counter-terrorism offences and designates specific institutions, and vests specific powers and functions; that is, the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and relevant law enforcement and security agencies. (Sources: allafrica.com, 14-16/12/2012)