By Umar Bayo Abdulwahab
Ilorin
Kwara state government has sponsored a Bill for an amendment to the existing law on cultism to the House of Assembly proposing a stiffer punishment for those caught indulging in secrete cult.
In the proposed Bill which had scaled through second reading on the floor of the House, the state government proposed a minimum of 10 years imprisonment and a maximum of 14 years for anyone found culpable in the acts.
The Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Kamaldeen Ajibade, stated this while briefing journalists at the end of state executive council meeting Ilorin yesterday.
He dismissed claims that “the rise in activities of cultits in the state is because the state government has whittled the existing laws on cultism in the state.”
Ajibade said the existing law on cultism also prescribed that any landlord whose property was being used as cultists’ den would forfeit such.
He said following the rise in activities of cultists in recent time in the state, the government had approached the House of Assembly twice to amend the existing laws so as to curb the menace.
“There is what we call separation of power, we don’t make laws, it is the House of Assembly that makes law”, he said
On the White Paper submitted on the recent clash over between Share/Tsargi communities over boundary issue, he said the Council had directed that the implementation of the paper be put on hold.
Reasons for this, he clarified was to allow the state’s government review and harmonise all legal issues and implementation done so far on 2010 white papers on the matter.
The commissioner said the government was aware of pending legal matters instituted in courts on the boundary disputes by various persons and would not want to act in prejudice.
He said while judgement had been delivered in some of the matters, some were still pending in courts.
