The Right of an Accused Person Under the Nigerian Legal System
The Right of an Accused Person Under the Nigerian Legal System
Abstract of The Right of an Accused Person Under the Nigerian Legal System
Under the Nigerian criminal justice the constitutional right of an accused person is enshrined in Section 35 and 36 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 such rights include, the right to be informed promptly in the language that he understands, the details and nature of the offence of the accused, the right to be given adequate time to prepare his defence, the right to defend himself in person or by legal practitioner of his own choice, the right to have an interpreter free of charge if he does not understand the language of the court, the right to have record of the proceeding kept and the right to have copies of this within seven days of the conclusion of the case, the right to remain silent during the trial, the right not to be tried and convicted twice for the same offence, the right to be presumed innocent until he is proved guilty and the right not to be charged for an unwritten offence. All these rights aimed at ensuring that an accused person is not unjustly dealt with.
Also the relevant provisions in CRIMINAL PROCEDURE CODE, CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ACT and the CHILD RIGHT ACT shed more light on the rights of an accused person in criminal trials. The thesis in its totality is channelled toward making sure that Nigerians are fully informed/aware of their rights especially the accused person and how it could be enforced. This project will not seek to look at the rights generally but most importantly the right of an accused person vis-a-vis the relevant provisions.