Lagos Govt: Men Who Force Their Wives To Have Sex Risk Life Imprisonment

The Lagos State Government has issued a stern warning to husbands who force their wives into sexual intercourse, saying marital status does not give a man the right to compel his wife to have sex against her will.
The state’s Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Ministry of Justice, Adebayo Haroun, said a husband who forces his wife to have sexual intercourse after she has refused consent could face prosecution for sexual assault by penetration, an offence he said carries a punishment of life imprisonment under Lagos State law.
Haroun gave the warning on Monday during a briefing to mark the flag-off of the Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Awareness (DSVA) campaign.
His comments came in response to questions about whether a married woman could report her husband for rape if he had sexual intercourse with her without her consent.
The DPP explained that Lagos law makes a distinction between rape and sexual assault by penetration in cases involving married couples. According to him, where the marriage remains intact and the couple are in good terms, forced intercourse is not classified as rape under the provision he was referring to.
However, he stressed that this does not give husbands a licence to force their wives into sexual activity.
“Once there is an issue between them and the wife refuses to have sex with him, the husband cannot force her,” Haroun said.
He explained that where a husband disregards his wife’s refusal and uses force to have sexual intercourse with her, the matter could be prosecuted as sexual assault by penetration rather than rape, with life imprisonment as the stated maximum punishment.
The DPP also dismissed the notion that payment of bride price gives a husband unrestricted rights over his wife.
“Any man that feels because he paid his wife’s dowry, nobody can challenge him for domestic violence, the wife should report such a man to the Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency,” he said.
The warning forms part of the Lagos State Government’s broader campaign to tackle domestic and sexual violence and encourage victims to speak out and seek assistance.
Haroun urged women experiencing domestic or sexual abuse to report such incidents to the appropriate authorities, stressing that marital status or cultural expectations should not be used as a shield for violence.