AN APPRAISAL OF LEGAL PLURARISM IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE IN NIGERIA
ABSTRACT
It is trite beyound any equivocation that the Nigerian society is made up of people with diverse cultures, behaviours and ways of life. When the British came as colonial masters, they understood this and before they departed in October 1960, they devised ways of accommodating the inherent differences in the cultures of the North and South by ultimately creating two distinct Criminal Justice Systems, the Penal and Criminal Procedure Codes System for the North and the Criminal Code/Criminal Procedure Act System for the South. This was based on the premise that there was the need to respect the people‟s diverse cultures, religions and ways of life. When the Country returned to civilian rule in 1999, some States decided to re-introduce the Islamic Criminal Justice System by enacting the Shari‟a Penal Codes and the Shari‟a Criminal Procedure Codes. Consequently, Nigeria became a federation with plural criminal justice systems. Although the three different systems of criminal justice administration have been complementing one another, the problem, however, is that their parallel existence in the administration of Nigeria‟s criminal justice has largely been characterized by conflicts and inconsistencies. This research, therefore, appraises legal pluralism in the administration of criminal justice in Nigeria. In so doing, the research work adopts doctrinal as well as empirical methods of research. The sources of information relied upon include relevant Textbooks, Statutes, Articles in Journals, Case Law, Internet Materials as well as Data retrieved from Questionnaires issued to respondents on legal pluralism in the administration of criminal justice in Nigeria. The research work finds that multiplicity of substantive and adjectival criminal laws, procedural differences, nature of punishments and differences of enforcement mechanisms has largely been the challenges of legal pluralism in the administration of criminal justice in Nigeria. The research work concludes by recommending that the General Criminal Justice System (English – Styled Criminal Laws) comprising of the Penal/Criminal Procedure Codes and the Criminal Code/Criminal procedure Act should be unified while the Islamic Criminal Justice System should be harmonised and applied separately to only Muslims, thus enhancing limited legal pluralism. It also recommends that the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 should be adopted and domesticated as the procedural law by the States in Nigeria, with modification to suit their respective peculiarities, with respect to the general criminal justice system (English – Styled Criminal Laws).
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page … … … … i
Declaration … … … … ii
Dedication … … … … iii
Certification … … … … iv
Acknowledgement … … …. … v
Table of Cases … … …..… ….. … vi
Table of Statutes … … … … ix
Abstract … … … … xi
Table of Contents … … … … xii
CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study … ……. 1
1.2 Statement of the Problems … … … 6
1.3 Aim and Objectives of the Research … … … 8
1.4 Justification of the Research … … … 8
1.5 Scope of the Research … … … 9
1.6 Research Methodology …. … … 9
1.7 Literature Review … … … 12
1.8 Organizational Layout … … … 21
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CHAPTER TWO
CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS OF SOME KEY TERMS
2.1 Introduction … … … 23
2.2 Legal Pluralism … … … 23
2.3 Administration of Justice … … … 27
2.4 Criminal Justice System … … … 28
2.5 Islamic Criminal Justice System … … … 32
2.6 The Shari‟a Penal Code … … … 33
CHAPTER THREE
AN APPRAISAL OF THE GRNERAL CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM (ENGLISH – STYLED) IN NIGERIA
3.1 Introduction … … … 34
3.2 Brief History of the Penal/Criminal Codes and Criminal Procedure Code/Criminal
Procedure Act … … … 36
3.3 Agitation for Harmonisation of the Penal/Criminal Codes … 38
3.4 Consideration of Some Provisions of the Penal and Criminal Codes that can be
Harmonised … … … … 40
3.4.1 Defences Negating Criminal Intent … … … 41
3.4.2 Offences against Persons … … … 54
3.4.3 Offences against Property … … … 57
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3.4.4 Offences against Public Order/Peace … … … 61
3.5 Offences that cannot be Harmonised … … … 62
3.6 The Administration of criminal Justice Act 2015 … ….. 65
3.7 Application of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 …… 66
3.8 Examination of Some Provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015…67
3.9 Challenges of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 … 84
CHAPTER FOUR
AN APPRAISAL OF THE ISLAMIC CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM IN NIGERIA
4.1 Introduction … … … … 87
4.2 Brief History of Islamic Criminal Justice System in Nigeria … … 88
4.3 The General Characteristics of the Shari‟a Penal Codes … … 93
4.4 Distinctive Features of the Shari‟a Penal Codes … … … 102
4.5 The Shari‟a Criminal Procedure Code … … … … 103
4.6 Problems and Challenges in the Application of Islamic Criminal Justice System in
Nigeria … … … … … 104
4.6.1 The Constitutionality or otherwise of the Islamic Criminal Justice System in
Nigeria … … … … … … 105
4.6.2 The Relevancy and Efficacy of the Reforms introduced in the Shari‟a States‟
Judiciary … … … … … … 114
4.6.3 The Appellate Criminal Jurisdiction of the Shari‟a Court of Appeal …. 115
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4.6.4 Confusion, Problems and Conflicts of the State of the Law on the Appellate Criminal
Jurisdiction of the Shari‟a Court of Appeal … … … … 126
4.6.5 Enforcement and Execution of Judgements of Shari‟a Courts based on the Shari‟a Penal
Code … … … … … … … … …. 131
4.7 Prospects of the Application of Islamic Criminal Justice System in Nigeria …136
CHAPTER FIVE
AN APPRAISAL OF THE LEGAL INSTITUTIONS FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE IN NIGERIA
5.1 Introduction … … … … 139
5.2 The Nigeria Police Force … … … ….. 139
5.3 General Duties and Role of the Nigeria Police in the Administration of Criminal Justice
in Nigeria … … … … 140
5.4 The Criminal Courts … … … … 172
5.4.1 Hierarchy and Jurisdiction of the Courts in Criminal Matters ….. 173
5.4.2 The Supreme Court of Nigeria ……. ………. …. 174
5.4.3 The Court of Appeal ……………. ……….. …. 180
5.4.4 The Federal High Court …………… …………. …… 184
5.4.5 The High Court of a State …………. ………… …… 185
5.4.6 The Magistrate Court …………. ………… …… 189
5.4.7 The Area Court …………. ………… ……. 197
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5.4.8 The Shari‟a Court ……………… ………… …… 201
5.5 The Nigerian Prison Services … … … 205
5.6 The Office of the Attorney – General … … … 215
5.7 The Institution of Hisbah … … … 226
5.8 The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) ……. 229
5.9 The Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC)
…………… ………………………. … …….. 230
5.10 The Department of State Security (DSS) …………. ……….. 231
CHAPTER SIX
DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS
6.1 Introduction ………… ……….. …… 233
6.2 Socio-demographic Characteristics of the Respondents …….. 233
6.3 General Knowledge among the Respondents on Legal Pluralism in the Administration of
Criminal Justice in Nigeria …………….. ……… 235
6.4 Respondents Responses on Legal Pluralism in the Administration of Criminal Justice in
Nigeria ………….. ………………….. ……….. 237
CHAPTER SEVEN
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
7.1 Introduction … … … 240
7.2 Summary … … … 240
7.3 Findings … … … 245
7.4 Recommendations … … … 248
Bibliography … … … 252
Appendix …. …. …… 259