The Edo State House of Assembly has intensified the state’s fight against cult violence and criminal gangs, passing a bill to amend the Secret Cult and Similar Activities Prohibition Law, 2025, in a decisive move aimed at strengthening public safety.
The amended legislation was approved following the presentation of a report by the House Committee on Security and Public Safety, chaired by the Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Maria Edeko, after a detailed review of its findings and recommendations.
Lawmakers, sitting as a Committee of the Whole, adopted the committee’s two key findings and one recommendation before proceeding to a rigorous clause-by-clause consideration of the bill, culminating in its passage.
During the same plenary session, the Assembly received 30 copies of an executive bill forwarded by Governor Monday Okpebholo, seeking to establish the Edo State Emergency Management Agency (ESEMA) a move widely seen as part of a broader plan to strengthen disaster response and crisis coordination in the state.
Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Blessing Sherriff Agbebaku, immediately referred the emergency agency bill to the Committee on Rules, Business and Government House for further legislative work.
Meanwhile, two other bills were stepped down and deferred for consideration at a later date. These include proposed amendments to the Edo State Lottery Establishment Law and a bill seeking to strengthen the Edo Rural Access Road Agency (RARA), aimed at improving the management and maintenance of Class C and D roads across the state.
The House subsequently adjourned plenary to Monday, 1 December 2025, as legislators prepare for further deliberations on key governance and security reforms.
