Senate President Godswill Akpabio has defended his remarks on the proposed suicide bill, insisting on his position amid growing criticism from psychiatrists, who have demanded an apology.
The psychiatrists faulted Akpabio’s comments, warning that they could reinforce stigma against people experiencing suicidal thoughts and discourage those struggling with mental health challenges from seeking professional help.
Akpabio was quoted as saying during the Senate debate on October 13, 2026, that, “If you attempt it [suicide], you better succeed. If you don’t succeed, we will send you to prison.”
However, the Association of Psychiatrists in Nigeria, in a statement signed by its President, Dr Veronica Nyamali, and Secretary, Prof Mayowa Okonoda, said its statement was prompted by reports that the Senate was considering a bill by Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong seeking to establish a framework for suicide prevention, decriminalise attempted suicide, and provide support for survivors, with Sections 327 and 231 of Nigeria’s Criminal Code and Penal Code, respectively, identified as provisions currently used to criminalize attempted suicide.
The association maintained that a person who survived a suicide attempt should be regarded first and foremost as an individual experiencing severe psychological distress, and that the appropriate response was urgent medical care, compassionate assessment, treatment, safety planning, and follow-up care, not a threat of imprisonment.
“APN respectfully but firmly rejects the proposition that a person who survives a suicide attempt should be punished for surviving. Public officials have a particular responsibility to communicate in ways that protect life, reduce stigma and encourage people at risk to seek help.
“The association acknowledges that suicide and attempted suicide are serious public health concerns requiring urgent and comprehensive intervention.
“However, a person who survives a suicide attempt should be regarded first and foremost as an individual experiencing severe psychological distress.
“The appropriate response is urgent medical care, compassionate assessment, treatment, safety planning and follow-up—not a threat of imprisonment,” the association said.
Continuing, the APN warned that threatening imprisonment for surviving a suicide attempt could deter people from seeking help, discourage families from disclosing attempts, delay access to emergency medical and psychiatric care, and intensify the stigma that already made help-seeking difficult in Nigeria, all of which would undermine rather than strengthen suicide prevention.
“The APN respectfully calls upon the National Assembly to give careful consideration to the evidence and international public-health guidance concerning the criminalisation of attempted suicide and to engage mental health professionals, people with lived experience, human-rights experts and other stakeholders in the legislative process,” the statement noted.
The association called on the National Assembly to enact legislation removing criminal penalties for attempted suicide and called on the Senate President to retract and apologise for the reported statement.
It added, “The National Assembly should enact legislation that removes criminal penalties for attempted suicide and establishes a clear, funded framework for prevention, care, rehabilitation and continuing support.
“The Senate President and all public office holders should use language that protects life, avoids stigma and encourages people in distress to seek help; APN calls for a clarification or retraction of the reported statement by the Senate President and an apology to Nigerians.”
