Senate Votes Against Bill on Private Investigators
- Esther
- Oct 2, 2024
- 1 min read

The Nigerian Senate has rejected a bill aimed at regulating private investigators. The proposed legislation, sponsored by Senator Osita Ngwu (PDP, Enugu West), sought to establish licensing and professional standards for private investigators in the country.
According to report, "The Senate on Wednesday stood down a bill for an act to prescribe standard and condition of licence for operation and practice of private investigations."
Senator Ngwu, who is also the Senate Minority Whip, emphasized that the bill aimed to provide a framework for the licensing and practice of private investigators. He noted that the practice is well-established in countries like the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, and Canada.
Ngwu stated, "The objectives of the bill include fraud prevention, detection, assessment and resolution; corporate fraud and risk management services; insurance fraud and claims investigation; aviation accident and loss investigation; marine loss investigation; occupational health and safety incident investigation; and witness location and bail bond defaulters etc."
Despite its comprehensive scope, the bill faced massive opposition during the debate. While senators like Deputy Minority Leader Olalere Oyewumi and Victor Umeh supported the bill, others such as Adams Oshiomhole, Iya Abbas, and Mustapha Saliu opposed it. They argued that the bill could be misused for personal vendettas, describing it as a "recipe for personal fight."
The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, ultimately called on Senator Ngwu to withdraw the bill for further legislative refinement, which he did. This decision signifies the ongoing debates over regulatory measures in the private investigation industry and the balance between oversight and potential misuse.
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