Nollywood actor and humanitarian, Williams Uchemba, has sparked debate after calling for the public execution of convicted kidnappers in Nigeria, arguing that harsher penalties are needed to deter rising crime across the country.
In a video shared on his Instagram page, Uchemba said Nigeria must begin to enforce its constitution and apply strict consequences for serious crimes like kidnapping, which already carries a death sentence under Nigerian law.
Using a parenting analogy, he compared unchecked wrongdoing in children to the failure of the justice system, saying:
“When a child begins to steal meat from the mother’s pot and the mother upon catching the child does very little in terms of punishment… she is breeding a hardened criminal that will eventually grow up and become a national disgrace to the family.”
The actor, who is also a father of two, argued that public executions would serve as a strong deterrent and even proposed the creation of a televised channel, similar to Big Brother Naija, dedicated to showcasing such punishments.
“Some of these kidnappers are caught, but we don’t hear anything about whether they are being imprisoned or executed. If you ask me, there should be a dedicated channel… where they are publicly executed because until we start executing consequences for certain actions, we cannot see results,” he said.
Uchemba further referenced China’s strict justice system, noting that crimes like kidnapping and corruption in the Asian country attract the death penalty.
“We want to be like China, but we do not have the balls that China has,” he added.
His remarks come amid increasing cases of kidnapping and growing public anxiety ahead of the festive season. Some Nigerians have expressed support for his position, while others say public executions would violate human rights and may not address the root causes of insecurity.
