TheCable

A bill seeking to increase the penalty for abusing or misusing the Nigerian flag has passed the second reading at the house of representatives.

The bill proposes to amend the flag and coats of arms Act, 2004 and increase the fine for the abuse of the flag from N100 to N100,000 for individuals and N1 million for corporate organisations.

For a persistent offence, the bill suggests a daily fine of N20,000 for an individual and N100,000 for a corporate organisation.

Section 4 of the Act delineates acts of abusing or misusing the flag, including defacing or causing it to become tattered.

The section reads: “Subject to the provisions of this section, if in any public place in Nigeria, the National Flag is to be exhibited or flown for any purpose, it shall not be exhibited with or be flown on the same staff or cross bar with the flag of any State, or the flag of any Commonwealth or foreign country; and the National Flag or any other flag when exhibited or flown shall not appear in a defaced or tattered condition; but the National Flag shall not be deemed to be defaced by reason only of the fact that it is embodied in or forms part of a State flag”.

Section 4 (2) says “Where the flag of any State is flown in the State to which it relates or elsewhere than in the Federal Capital Territory Abuja, it shall not be necessary for the National Flag to be flown at the same time; but if the flag of a State and the National Flag are to be flown at the same time in a public place in that State or elsewhere in Nigeria, the National Flag of at least the same size as the State flag shall fly above that of any State flag”.

The bill is sponsored by Sada Soli, a lawmaker representing  Jibia/Kaita federal constituency of Katsina.

Leading the debate on the bill during plenary on Wednesday, Soli said the Nigerian flag is a national asset that must be protected

He said the flags are in a sorry state — tattered and battered– in some organisations.

The bill also seeks to add members of the Nigeria and Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) or any paramilitary organisations as agencies that can arrest any person for abuse or misuse of the Nigerian flag.