Thread by @segalink

Yes distinguished. At Equity you can not be coerced into bearing witness against yourself before man. This is called self incrimination. You are presumed innocent until proven guilty at law and no @PoliceNG officer can use anything they obtained by coercion via torture.

https://twitter.com/octacore_/status/1168422457021255681

Your right to silence is guaranteed by Law because anything you say can be used against you in the court of Law. So you can choose to say nothing until you have spoken to your counsel/advocate. Most corrupt officers will not even tell you that you are under arrest.

This is because they know that before an arrest can be made there must be legal grounds and evidence beyond reasonable doubt. In most cases people are usually abducted because of their ignorance about their rights and subsequently extorted/robbed at gun point. #EndImpunity

Accusare nemo se debet, nisi coram Deo. — No one is compelled to accuse himself, except before God.

Under the 1999 Cinstitution as amended, section 35(2) states clearly that — “Any person who is arrested or detained shall have the right to remain silent or avoid answering any question until after consultation with a legal practitioner or any other person of his choice.”

This is often termed as the right to silence and privilege against self incrimination. No one should be ceded the opportunity to bully you out of your consistitutinally guaranteed rights. Feel free to report any @PoliceNG officer that moves against you based on this. @SIAF_NG

The Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 also codifies this right in section 6 which reads;

6. (2) The police officer or the person making the arrest or the police officer in charge of a police station shall inform the suspect of his rights to: ...

(a) remain silent or avoid answering any question until after consultation with a legal practitioner or any other person of his own choice;

(b) consult a legal practitioner of his choice before making, endorsing or writing any statement or answering any question put to him after arrest;

The right of an accused person in a criminal trial to remain silent is a manifestation of the privilege against self-incrimination. This privilege is protected under section 36(11) of the 1999 Constitution which reads:

“No person who is tried for a criminal offence shall be compelled to give evidence at the trial”

This constitutional protection is buttressed by section 181 of the Evidence Act 2011 and section 261(1) CPC which provides that:

“In any criminal proceeding, where a defendant has not given evidence, the court, prosecution or any other party to the proceeding may comment on the failure of the defendant to give evidence, ...

...but the comment shall not suggest that the defendant failed to do so because he was, or that he is, guilty of the offence charged”.