COVID-19: Falana Flays House Of Reps Over Infectious Disease Bill

A renowned human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has berated the house of representatives over the proposed Infectious Diseases Bill

Speaking when he appeared on Channels Television’s Politics today, Falana described the bill as superfluous, illegal and unconstitutional.

The Senior Advocate of Nigeria said proposed bill, if passed into law, would amount to duplication of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, NCDC, and Prevention Act of 2018, adding that the Act has taken care of what the legislators are trying to achieve.

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The legal practitioner said, “It is pertinent to inform Nigerians that in November 2018, a law was enacted in this country – the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control Act, NCDC Act, which has taken care of infectious diseases in the country.

“So, it is not correct, in fact, it is misleading on the part of the House of Representatives to say that it is amending the 1926 Quarantine Act because there is already a development between 1926 and now. You had the 2018 Act which has taken care of the entire provisions of the new bill.

“The new bill, as far as the law is concerned, is superfluous. Its provisions are largely illegal and unconstitutional.”

Also read:Infectious Disease: House Of Reps Halts Public Hearing On Controversial Bill

Several measures have been put in place to check the spread of Coronavirus in Nigeria, which has infected 2,950 people in the country and claimed over 100 lives already.

The introduction of the infectious disease Bill has, however, sparked outrage and criticism from citizenry, especially on social media. Aside from the draconian tagged, there is also a moral cross hanging on its sponsors as many as accused them of plagiarising a Singapore public health legislative framework.

The bills before the House of Representatives is co-sponsored by the Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila and two others,

Gbajabiamila, on Tuesday said the Bill was proposed in the best interests of the Nigerian people.

According to him, the allegation that the Bill is a sinister attempt to turn the citizens into guinea pigs for medical research and take away their fundamental human rights was far from the truth.