The bill to address wildlife trafficking and habitat destruction passed second reading in the House of Representatives at Thursday’s plenary.
Sponsor of the bill and member representing Kwande/Ushongo Federal Constituency of Benue State, Hon. Terseer Ugbor, while explaining the general principles of the bill, said the wildlife trade and trafficking was assuming a very dangerous dimension, hence, there was need to halt the menace through a legislative framework.
Ugbo, who is the Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Environment, insisted that the 10th National Assembly lawmakers must rise to the occasion of pressing challenges such as illegal wildlife trade, habitat loss and the decline of Nigeria’s unique wildlife populations and reposition it in accordance with the global best practices.
He said the legal framework of wildlife in Nigeria must be reviewed to enable effective handling of poachers and traffickers who pose a major challenge in the industry.
He said: “The Bill seeks to improve the capabilities of law enforcement agencies, give investigators more powers to look into financial matters and conduct operations guided by intelligence, and enable judges to speed up wildlife cases and recover assets.
“Additionally, it aligns with international treaties, encourages global cooperation and introduces strict penalties for poachers and traffickers.
“Today, we take a bold stand against all illegal activities targeting our wildlife and forests by protecting our wildlife, we protect our own future and this bill signifies our collective commitment to turn the tide against the use of our borders to traffic illegal wildlife products such as pangolin scales and elephant ivory.
“A combination of lack of public awareness, weak legislation and minimal enforcement has hindered efforts to combat wildlife trafficking and biodiversity loss in Nigeria.
“As a result, Nigeria’s wildlife has declined massively, with species like lions, elephants, gorillas, and chimpanzees driven to the verge of extinction”, he said.
After members contributed to the bill, saying that the protection of endangered species was in consonance with the international treaties, the Deputy Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu passed it for a second reading after putting it to vote.
He referred it to the House Committee on Environment and tasked them to turn in their report in two weeks’ time.