Nigerian Senate advances bill to stop punishing attempted suicide

Abuja — A bill to decriminalise attempted suicide in Nigeria passed its second reading in the Senate on Tuesday, with most senators backing it on a voice vote, Premium Times reports.

The bill, sponsored by Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong of Cross River South, would replace punishment with medical assessment, treatment and support for survivors, and set up a legal framework for prevention.

Two laws that disagree

At present the Criminal Code and the Penal Code both make attempted suicide an offence, with up to a year in prison. The National Mental Health Act of 2021 treats it as a psychiatric emergency that needs immediate medical help.

Mr Ekpenyong said that contradiction needs to be resolved. Treating people as criminals, he argued, discourages them from seeking help, leads families to hide what happened, stops health workers from reporting cases, deepens stigma and weakens the data needed for prevention.

The debate

• Senator Dayo Faduyile of Ondo South, a medical doctor, said it should be treated as a medical emergency. He noted that depression can impair judgement and that prison or police custody cannot address the conditions behind it.
• Senator Abdul Ningi of Bauchi Central also argued for medical care over punishment.
• The Senate Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, cautioned that states adopt their own criminal justice laws, so the Senate must establish how far the change would apply across the country.
• The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, rejected decriminalisation, arguing that removing the penalty could encourage attempts, and asked state assemblies to give their views at the public hearing.

The bill now goes to the Senate committees on health and on the judiciary, human rights and legal matters.

If you are struggling or thinking about harming yourself, please speak to someone you trust or seek help from a doctor or health centre near you.

Source: Premium Times, reporting by Abdulqudus Ogundapo, 13 October 2026.