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The House of Representatives have proposed a bill seeking one and five months leave to men and women who lost their spouse respectively.
The Bill which scaled second reading on the floor of the House of Representatives was sponsored by the member representing Bida/Katcha/Gbako Federal Constituency, Niger State, Saidu Abdullahi.
The bill will grant the widows and widowers a period to mourn their spouse and recover from the physiological trauma.
Leading the debate on the general principles of the bill during the Tuesday’s plenary, Abdullahi lamented the plight of spouses in Nigeria who have lost their partners, adding that the difficulty of single parenting was both deep and complex.
“The bill is targeted at addressing the pressing issue of supporting individuals who have lost their spouses and helping them navigate the challenging period of widowhood,” he said.
This bill is divided into five clauses.
The first clause stipulates the period of leave that is formally granted to a widow and widower with full payment entitlement.
The second clause defines the persons who are eligible for the leave and the third clause states the punishment for the violation of the proposed law.
Part four provides for the interpretation of the terms “widow” and “widower”.
