The Anambra State Government has introduced a new burial regulation that prohibits the giving of cows, goats and other costly items as condolence gifts, while also restricting burials to Saturdays only.
The law, recently passed by the Anambra State House of Assembly and made public on Monday, is aimed at controlling excessive funeral spending, reducing financial burdens on grieving families and improving productivity across communities.
Under the new regulation, wake-keep ceremonies have been banned, while the use of posters, banners and billboards displaying deceased persons is no longer permitted in the state.
The law also outlines penalties for violators, including fines and possible jail terms, with community monitoring committees to be established to oversee enforcement.
Among the provisions, all burial and funeral ceremonies involving indigenous deceased persons must be registered with the town union at a fee of N1,500.
Directional signposts to burial venues are permitted but can only be displayed within seven days before the burial and removed within seven days afterward. Violators risk a fine of N100,000, six months imprisonment, or both.
The law further states that corpses must not remain in mortuaries for more than two months from the date of death, while roads and streets cannot be blocked for funeral activities without approval from local authorities.
Public display of caskets for advertisement or sales purposes has also been prohibited.
Families are expected to settle all outstanding community or religious levies before conducting funeral ceremonies.
Wake ceremonies of any kind are banned, while religious activities such as vigil masses or service of songs must end by 9 p.m. without food, drinks, live music or cultural entertainment.
All funeral activities must now take place within a single day, with burial services beginning no later than 9 a.m. and lasting no more than two hours.
The law also limits the public display of preserved corpses to a maximum of 30 minutes.
Condolence visits after burials are restricted to one day, while condolence gifts are limited to cash, one jar of palm wine, one carton of beer and one crate of soft drinks.
Families of the deceased are also barred from distributing souvenirs during funeral ceremonies.
Other restrictions include limiting undertakers to six persons without dancing with caskets, restricting aso ebi to immediate family members and select groups, and discouraging unnecessary food and drink expenses during funerals.
The law prohibits burials on local market days and bans youth groups from carrying portraits of deceased persons around communities.
It also outlaws destruction of crops or property during funeral activities and prohibits the use of firearms except traditional “Nkponana.”
Only programmes for religious services or Order of Mass are allowed, while second funeral rites after burial have been prohibited except in legacy cases.
The government also directed the Commissioner for Lands to establish state burial grounds in all communities for unidentified or abandoned corpses.
To ensure compliance, monitoring and implementation committees will operate within communities, with violations punishable by a N100,000 fine, six months imprisonment, or both. Magistrate Courts will handle offences arising from breaches of the law.