Anambra warns that denying women inheritance can attract four-year sentence

The Anambra State Government has warned that people who deny women or girls property inheritance because of their gender could face up to four years in prison. The State Attorney-General, Tobechukwu Nweke, issued the warning in a letter to the Nigeria Police that was made available to reporters in Awka. Nweke directed the police to investigate reported cases of gender-based disinheritance and prosecute offenders thoroughly.

He said the practice was an offence under Section 22 of Anambra State’s Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law, 2017. The Attorney-General asked the police to forward case files to his office for prosecution after investigations. He said the government had designated its Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Unit to handle prosecutions under the law.

The unit also deals with other forms of domestic violence and sexual offences, according to Nweke. He urged the police to take action on all reported cases rather than treating discriminatory inheritance practices as private family disputes. Nweke said Supreme Court decisions had declared customs and practices that prevent women from inheriting property unconstitutional and illegal.

Despite those rulings, he said, some people continued to engage in discriminatory practices. The directive places responsibility on the police to investigate allegations and on the Attorney-General’s office to pursue cases submitted for prosecution. The government’s warning sets out imprisonment as a possible consequence for conduct covered by the state law.

The material supplied does not identify a specific case prompting the directive or provide details of any arrest or prosecution.