The House of Representatives has proposed a constitutional amendment to safeguard the life of an unborn child carried by a pregnant woman sentenced to de.ath
The proposal followed the adoption of a bill by the House Committee on Constitution Review, chaired by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu.
The bill seeks to amend Section 33(1) of the 1999 Constitution, which provides that, “Every person has a right to life, and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of a sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been found guilty in Nigeria.”
Under the proposed amendment, a new subsection (1A) would be inserted to state: “Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, where a pregnant woman is convicted of an offence punishable by death, and it is proved to the satisfaction of the court that she is pregnant, the court shall sentence her to life imprisonment.”
Reacting to the proposal, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, commended the House for what he described as a progressive and humane initiative, arguing that an unborn child of a convicted mother was entitled to the right to life.
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