Revisiting the Legislative Bill on Kidnapping for Ransom in Nigeria

Abstract

One of the fundamental problems bothering the human person in Nigeria is that of kidnapping. In fact, the problem 
seems to be escalating every passing-day, given the extensive attention being constantly given to it by both print 
and electronic media in the country. It is because the problem has assumed a very dangerous dimension that 
Nigerians are now calling for an institutional (legal) address of the problem. However, before going into that, it is 
pertinent to first understand what kidnapping is all about. The word ‘kidnapping’ can be defined as “the forcible 
seizure, taking away and unlawful detention of a person against his/her will. It is a common law offence and the 
key part is that it is unwanted act on the part of the victim” (Inyang and Abraham 2013: 532). Uzoma and 
Nwanegbo-Ben (2014:132, cited in Ibrahim 2017) define kidnapping as the “act of seizing and detaining or carrying 
away a person by unlawful force or by fraud, and often with a demand for ransom. It involves taking a person from 
their family forcefully without their consent with the motive of holding the person as a hostage and earning a profit 
from their family”. For Ngwana (2014), kidnapping is a variant of armed robbery which is more disturbing because 
it often occurs in the open when people go about their usual businesses