Lagos may legalize cremation of corpses soon …Bill splits Lagos House of Assembly
Islam categorically disapproves of cremation because the religion has specific rites for the treatment of the body after death. Usually, a Muslim corpse is usually wrapped with a single piece of cloth for the burial and the body will be buried without a casket. In Christian countries and cultures, cremation has historically been discouraged, but […]
Islam categorically disapproves of cremation because the religion has specific rites for the treatment of the body after death. Usually, a Muslim corpse is usually wrapped with a single piece of cloth for the burial and the body will be buried without a casket. In Christian countries and cultures, cremation has historically been discouraged, but today in many denominations, cremation is accepted. However, in Nigeria and the southwest zone in particular, Yoruba are known for jealously guarding their tradition and culture. Fond of giving their dead a befitting burial through internment, the y consider cremation unheard of. Sometime during the first tenure of Governor Babatunde Fashola, an Executive Bill that sought to make a law for cremation of corpses in Lagos State was sponsored and debated at the State House of Assembly. It generated great noise particularly during its public hearing. The Assembly complex was jam-packed by Muslim faithful that unanimously condemned the move.
The assembly backed down from pursuing the bill and it was not raised anymore until recently. Last week at the Lagos State House of Assembly, a bill to voluntarily cremate corpses in the state scaled through the second reading at the floor. Titled “A Bill for a Law to Provide for Voluntary Cremation of Corpses and Unclaimed Corpses within Lagos State,” when it comes into effect will make cremation of corpses legal in Lagos, especially unclaimed corpses that filled morgues at state-owned hospitals.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Health Services, Suuru Avoseh who initiated and sponsored the bill said the document has become inevitable due to the challenges being faced in the mortuaries across the state just as he disclosed that mortuary facilities in the state are overstretched. Avoseh, a Christian, representing Badagry Constituency II at the House argued at the floor of the House that hundreds of decomposing and unclaimed bodies had piled up in Isolo General Hospital Mortuary and something urgent has to be done to forestall an epidemic in the state. The lawmaker who moved the motion during plenary session stated that passing the bill would be an alternative to take care of the dead in Lagos adding, “It is a humane way to take care of the unclaimed corpses, though it is strange and new in Nigeria.’’
Avoseh explained that the mortuary was an eyesore when the committee visited Isolo General Hospital where many unclaimed corpses were piled up, making the morgue congested. He maintained that health official have been facing the problem of availability of land for giving the corpses mass burials. Avoseh told Weekly Trust that his committee representing the House in its findings following complaints by residents within Isolo neighbourhood discovered that failure of relatives to claim corpses is contributing to the present situation of the mortuaries.
On the bill, he said it was set to take care of some issues relating to the management of the mortuaries and would lead to the establishment of a crematorium for mostly unclaimed corpses as well as voluntary cremation of corpses. “The law would also solve the problem associated with getting land for mass burial; decongest the mortuaries battling with cases of unidentified and unclaimed corpses,” he noted. Additional findings revealed that Section 6 of the bill seeks to permit a child or children of the deceased, a close relative of the deceased, an undertaker and an agent or legal representative to cremate upon formal application.
Also, section 8 of the bill authorizes the Medical Director of the state hospitals to order for the cremation of unclaimed bodies in their respective mortuaries after six weeks of deposition, with the consent and approval of the Commissioner for Health. Under Section 10 of the bill, the cremator-in-charge of a crematorium must not dispose the ashes after a cremation except in accordance with written instructions of the applicant. Before burying the ashes, the cremator-in-charge must give the applicant at least 28 days written notice of intention to bury the ashes. The notice must be sent to the applicant’s address for service on the permission to cremate.”
But reacting to the move by the State House of Assembly, Professor Is’haq Akintola, and the Director Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) advised all Muslim members of the Assembly not to support passage of the bill into law. According to him, “It’s un-Islamic. It’s against Yoruba culture; it’s unheard of in this part of the world. I’m calling on all identified Muslims at the House not to encourage this move. It is against the directive of Allah.”
Abdul-Rasheed Salami, an Islamic cleric, frowned at the move by the State House of Assembly to legalize cremation, saying the government did not know what next to do. He said, “The Creator of mankind did not support cremation. It’s absurd and against the teachings of Islam. No sane lawmaker will have his hand in the move by the House. Those who are clamouring for such idea may incur the wrath of the people. They are now claiming there is no land to continue mass burial but forgetting that this same government has not failed to get hectares of land whenever it desire to start building expensive housing schemes across the five zones of the state. Cremation is not part of our culture, we don’t want it.”
Pastor Yomi Adigun also condemned the move by the House. He admitted few Christians of various denominations may tactically support the idea but argued the idea is alien to this part of the world.
Confused over the submission of members of the House on the issue during plenary, Speaker of the House, Adeyemi Ikuforiji, a Muslim, asked the House Committee on Healthcare Services headed by Avoseh to work on the details of the bill and focus more on making the idea attractive to members of the public. The committee was given a timeline of four weeks to report back to the House on latest work done on the bill.
Meanwhile, a crop of psychologists who spoke on the issue described the move as variance with the culture and beliefs of the people. Respondents say such decision, apart from being alien to Nigerian culture, contrives the rule of nature. A Clinical Psychologist, Mr. Peter Kanyin, told Weekly Trust that the decision of the legislators to bring about cremation is at variance with the self-concept theory which emphasises that human beings tend to appreciate personality more if they can trace them to where they are buried. He said the late Gani Fawehinmi’s example shows that people appreciate what he stood for because they could trace his burial place. He added that the idea of cremation can also build fear and trepidation.
Mr. Taiwo Hassan of the Department of Communication, Lagos State University, said cremation is an anathema to human beings and called on the legislators to jettison the idea.
Cremated remains which do not constitute a health risk may be buried or interred in memorial sites or cemeteries, or they may be legally retained by relatives and dispersed in various ways. In countries where cremation is legalized, it is usually done in a crematorium but some countries prefer different methods, such as open-air cremation.