Lagos DPP Warns Husbands: Forcing Wife Into Sex Can Attract Life Imprisonment
E-ISSN: 2354-4481
By Abiodun Faleke Peter
LAGOS, Nigeria — The Lagos State Government has warned husbands against forcing their wives into sexual intercourse after consent has been withheld, stressing that marriage does not give a man the right to compel his wife to have sex.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in the Lagos State Ministry of Justice, Dr Babajide Martins, gave the warning on Tuesday during a press briefing in Lagos to mark the commencement of the state’s Domestic and Sexual Violence Awareness Month.
Martins clarified that while the law does not technically recognise forced sexual intercourse between spouses as the offence of rape, a husband who forces his wife into sexual intercourse without her consent could face prosecution for sexual assault by penetration, an offence that carries a maximum punishment of life imprisonment under Lagos State law.
The clarification is significant because Section 258 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State provides for the offence of rape and prescribes life imprisonment, but subsection 258(3) states that sexual intercourse between a man and woman who are married is not unlawful for the purpose of that particular rape provision.
However, Section 259 separately provides that a person who sexually penetrates another person without consent commits the offence of sexual assault by penetration and is liable to imprisonment for life. Section 264 further defines consent as agreement by choice, where the person has the freedom and capacity to make and communicate that choice.
Speaking during the briefing, Martins said a husband could not rely on marriage or payment of dowry as justification for forcing his wife into sexual relations after she had refused.
He explained that where spouses are in disagreement and the wife has expressly withheld consent, the husband cannot lawfully use force to have sexual intercourse with her.
According to the DPP, such a case would not ordinarily be prosecuted as rape because of the spousal exemption in the rape provision. Instead, the appropriate charge could be sexual assault by penetration, which carries the possibility of life imprisonment upon conviction.
Martins urged women experiencing domestic or sexual violence to report such incidents to the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency (DSVA) for appropriate intervention.
The DSVA, established to coordinate the state’s response to domestic and sexual violence, provides services including reporting assistance, medical evaluation and care, and other forms of support for survivors.
The warning formed part of Lagos State’s broader campaign to increase public awareness of domestic and sexual violence, encourage victims and survivors to report abuse, and strengthen access to protection and justice.
The state government has continued to maintain specialised mechanisms for handling sexual and domestic violence cases, including dedicated judicial and prosecutorial structures.
The latest clarification also comes months after University of Lagos public law professor, Akeem Olajide Bello, explained that although the spousal exemption remains under the rape provision of the Lagos Criminal Law, the separate offence of sexual assault by penetration does not contain the same exemption and carries a life-imprisonment penalty.
The legal position therefore does not amount to Lagos State formally abolishing the spousal exemption from the offence of rape. Rather, it establishes that non-consensual sexual penetration within a marriage may still expose an accused husband to criminal prosecution under another provision of the state’s criminal law.
The Lagos State Government has consequently urged residents to understand the distinction and encouraged victims of domestic and sexual violence to seek help and report cases to the appropriate authorities.
The state’s position underscores the importance of consent and reinforces the legal consequences that may arise when force is used in sexual relations, including within marriage.
