Nigeria's Senate proposed on Thursday to replace life imprisonment with the death penalty as the maximum punishment for drug trafficking, the media reported.
The amendment was reportedly suggested after a bill on drug trafficking without the death penalty provision was passed by the Nigerian House of Representatives. The two versions are to be reconciled by the five elected members of the two chambers of the country's National Assembly.
According to the report, those in favor of the measure believed that the fear of facing execution would be a more effective deterrent for drug traffickers compared to a life sentence. On the other hand, legislators who were against the proposal raised concerns about the finality of the death penalty and the potential for innocent individuals to be wrongfully convicted.
On May 5, an international drug syndicate was broken up in Nigeria, the NDLEA said, adding that more than 4,700 kilograms of cannabis were seized and an ex-convict with illegal drugs was detained.
Among other West African countries serving as a transit point for drug smuggling is Senegal, where in December 2023, about 690 kilograms of cocaine were intercepted en route to Europe, according to the country's navy.