Uyo Akwa Ibom State — The Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly is set to consider and possibly pass a highly controversial bill on Tuesday January 13 2026 that seeks to criminalise sexual relationships between unmarried women and married men with stiff penalties prescribed for offenders.
According to information available to IBN News the proposed legislation which is reportedly sponsored by the Deputy Governor Senator Akon Inyang makes it a criminal offence for any young girl lady or woman to engage in sexual relations with a married man anywhere within Akwa Ibom State.
Under the bill as currently drafted any woman found guilty of the offence faces up to ten years imprisonment without an option of fine while the married man involved would be liable to a fine of two million naira.
The development was first made public by lawyer and farmer Obiavel Albert Abigo Esq who shared details of the bill on social media describing it as a move aimed at protecting marriages family values and moral standards in the state.
As reported the bill places criminal liability primarily on the female participant regardless of consent circumstances or relationship dynamics while imposing only a monetary fine on the married man. There is no corresponding provision criminalising married women involved in extramarital affairs and no civil remedies are outlined making the punishment entirely criminal in nature.
The proposed law has since triggered widespread debate and strong reactions across Akwa Ibom and beyond with opinions sharply divided. Supporters of the bill largely from conservative and religious circles argue that adultery has destroyed families and that strong laws are needed to deter immoral behaviour and preserve the sanctity of marriage.
However critics including women’s rights advocates legal practitioners and civil society groups have condemned the bill as discriminatory misogynistic and unconstitutional. They argue that punishing only women for a consensual act while imposing a lighter penalty on men amounts to selective morality and gender based injustice.
Legal analysts have warned that if passed the law may face immediate constitutional challenges particularly on grounds of violation of the right to equality before the law freedom from discrimination right to privacy and personal liberty as guaranteed under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria especially Section 42.
Others have questioned the priority of the legislation arguing that the state should focus on more pressing issues such as unemployment insecurity healthcare education and economic development rather than regulating private sexual conduct.
As the House of Assembly prepares to sit on Tuesday attention is now firmly fixed on the lawmakers and whether the bill will be passed as proposed amended subjected to public hearing or dropped entirely.
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