Enugu government moves against illegal’spiritualists’, bandits, kidnappers.

Dr. Peter Mbah, Governor of Enugu State, has submitted an executive bill to the Enugu State House of Assembly to combat criminal activity among native physicians, herbalists, and other individuals in the state.

The proposed legislation, titled “Maintenance of Internal Security, Vigilance, and Order,” prohibits money rituals (“okite”) and criminal bulletproof charms (“odeshi”).

It also prohibits illegal use or occupation of forests and land for criminal purposes.

According to Section 3(1), “Every person who engages in the practice or rendering of spiritual services within the state, whether as a native doctor, herbalist, spiritualist, chief priest, diviner, seer, or by any other traditional or spiritual title or designation, shall be registered with the ministry, department, or agency (MDA) of the state, as may be designated by the governor for that purpose.”

Practising without registration will result in a fine of between N1 million and N5 million, as well as a two-year prison sentence.

Section 15 of the proposed legislation states that “any person who, under the guise of spiritual or traditional practice (including but not limited to the practices commonly referred to as ‘okite’, ‘ezenwanyi’, or any other mystical or ritual name/form) administers or causes to be administered any charm, substance, or object on or for another person, for the purpose of: (a) invincibility and other forms of protection to facilitate the commission of any criminal offence; or

“Any person who falsely claims to possess supernatural powers or misleads the public into believing so for the purpose of gaining reward or influence (whether financially or otherwise) commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of three (3) years or to a fine of not less than three million naira (₦3,000,000), or both.”

It also states that if someone claims spiritual powers under this law, “the burden shall lie on such a person, during investigation, to provide reasonable proof of the purported supernatural abilities claimed.”

Similarly, Section 16 punishes anyone who uses or allows the use of any religious place to commit or help with a crime with six years in prison or a fine of N5 million, or both, and the place will be closed until the investigation is finished.

Article 17 reads: “Any person who performs, facilitates, demands, directs, or participates in any ritual or traditional practice involving the use of human parts, or who causes another person to do so, commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of twenty (20) years without the option of a fine.”

With regard to Section 13, “Any person found in a camp, bush, or forest within Enugu State without any reasonable or lawful cause and under circumstances giving rise to reasonable suspicion of involvement in any criminal activity shall be promptly handed over to the Nigeria Police Force or any competent security agency for proper investigation in accordance with the law.”

On the use of forests and property for banditry and kidnapping, the Bill proposes, “Any person who owns, occupies or has control over any land or building, whether located in a forest or elsewhere, and knowingly allows it to be used as a camp, hideout or base for kidnapping, the unlawful detention of victims, the collection of ransom or for any other activity connected to kidnapping or banditry, commits an offence and is liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term

Furthermore, any individual who knowingly permits anyone who is not a member of the nation’s security agencies to reside, camp, or establish any type of settlement on his or her land, except for farming, is punishable by two years in prison without the option of a fine.

Anyone who knowingly fails to notify suspicious use of their property to security authorities “commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of two (2) years without the option of a fine.”

“Subject to the provisions of Section 3 of the Criminal Code (Second Amendment) Law 2016, any land, property, or structure used in contravention of Sections 7, 8, 9 and 10 of this Law shall be forfeited to the Government of Enugu State,” the legislation adds.

Again, money, property, and other proceeds from theft, robbery, and kidnapping, among other things, will be forfeited to the Enugu State Government unless a valid and verifiable owner claims it within a reasonable time.

The bill also requires private security outfits to register with the state government, providing information about the outfit and all armed security operatives employed or deployed by them, while all presidents-general of town unions must submit security reports to local government council chairmen or any other department designated by the government no later than the first week of each new month.

In the same vein, the measure requires landlords and proprietors of hotels, guest houses, and estate associations to obtain and report valid forms of identification, phone numbers, occupations, and places of work of potential renters and visitors to the appropriate authority.

Proprietors of hotels and other lodging facilities shall install a surveillance camera within public areas to record and report records of actions to relevant authorities.

Penalties for breach of this law range from a fine of not less than N500,000 for landlords to N1 million.