June 24, (THEWILL)- A Bill for a law to regulate organ harvesting and transplantation in Lagos State has scaled second reading in the State House of Assembly.
The Bill, titled: “Lagos State Organ Harvest and Transplantation Bill 2021,” the Clerk of the House, Olalekan Onafeko, said, will regulate organ harvest and transplantation in Lagos state for other connected purposes.
Leading debate on the bill, Chairman, House Committee On Health Services, Olusola Sokunle (Oshodi-Isolo 1), explained that the bill captured the legal framework for the regulation of organ transplantation from donors either living or dead to patients in need.
He said the bill would regulate the harvest and transplant of human organs in order to curb illegal trading of the organs, adding that the bill would ensure persons suffering from organ failure have access to available organs, adding that it would also ensure standard medical procedure for human organ harvest and transplant is followed.
Sokunle said the bill had seven parts with 37 sub-sections and tried to curb illegal trade in human parts.
Clause 33 of the bill, he said spells out the offences and penalties for culprit provides that a person who removes the organ of another person for a reason other than therapeutic purposes commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of 10 years without an option of fine.
“Part two of the bill deals with the creation of a department for the purpose of organ harvest and transplant in the ministry of health, who shall see to the affairs of organ harvest and transplant in the state. This part also talks about the Coordinator and other staff of the department. Also, it spells out the formation of authorization Committee, function of the Committee and State Register for organ harvest and transplant”, he cited.
On his part, Gbolahon Yishawu (Eti-Osa 2), said the bill would help in putting a stop to organ trafficking, calling the attention of the House to the coaching of the regulations which exempted the Commissioner of Health from following the regulations and approval law.
Yisuawu added that clauses which would shut out the House from investigating the activities should be avoided.
“The way the bill is couched, there are a lot of human rights issues therein. Although the bill falls under the Committee on Health but I will suggest that the Committee that handles human rights should also be involved in it”, he noted.
In his contribution, Hon. Rotimi Olowo (Somolu 1) condemned the illegal act of harvesting organs for monetary gain, adding that the act cut across the sections of the country.
Olowo stated that the bill would put an end to harvesting of organs for financial gain and that it will also protect the minors and mentally-ill persons whose organs cannot be harvested without the consent of their next of kins.
Also, the Deputy Speaker, Wasiu Sanni Eshinlokun, lamented the high rate of organ trafficking in the country, adding that the bill was all encompassing and that it should be supported by all members of the House.
However, Speaker of the House, Rt (Hon) Mudashiru Obasa, said the bill was a good and best thing that would happen to the state, adding that it would help those with terminal organ failure to still live as there would be certified organ transplant for them.
Obasa said that the bill would as well criminalise the act of using organs for ritual purposes.
He directed that the Administration of Criminal Justice Law be studied so that the Organ Harvest and Transplantation Bill considered would be all-encompassing.
The Speaker then committed the Bill to the Committee on Health for public hearing.
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