Premium Times: Akpabio's suicide remarks spark demand to decriminalize attempts
Senate President Godswill Akpabio allegedly declared days after World Mental Health Day: "If you attempt suicide, make sure you die. Anyone who attempts and fails will go to jail." The remarks, widely shared online, landed as a blow to advocates who fought to replace the 1958 Lunacy Act with the 2022 National Mental Health Act.
Nigeria still criminalizes attempted suicide under Section 327 of the Criminal Code and Section 231 of the Penal Code—up to 12 months' imprisonment—despite federal commitments to decriminalize. One in four to five Nigerians lives with a mental health condition. An estimated 15,000 die by suicide annually (third leading cause of death for ages 15–29), with 20–25 attempts for each death and 135 people deeply affected per suicide. The Mental Health Act, passed three years ago, remains largely unimplemented, leaving millions without promised protection, services, or funding.
Psychiatrist Margaret Uddin Ojeahere shares the story of Daniel, a 28-year-old insurgency survivor from Plateau State who rebuilt his life through community support, therapy, and faith—only to hear Akpabio's words while waiting for a clinic appointment. The message to vulnerable Nigerians: survival is a crime.
The piece demands urgent decriminalization, full Mental Health Act implementation, investment in community treatment centers and crisis helplines, and integration of mental health into primary care. Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong's counter-view is cited: when someone tries to end it all, "we should protect, support, and never punish."
Will lawmakers treat mental health as a core governance requirement and implement the Act, or will vulnerable Nigerians keep facing prosecution for surviving crisis?