₦airaland Forum

stchinedu:
Where are the human right lawyers....It will help if you give their numbers.

All I see around are pocket right lawyers.

Just check the facebook link on my signature but please don't forget to come back to nairaland and testify.

bolabolabo:
Hmnnn. I learnt from that.

Due process Advocates. Do they really function?

Just check my signature and read all about them there, you will be surprise that a group like that exists in Nigeria.

vchykp:
lolx.. D OP just reminded me of my days in SARS net, only Godcould bear me witness that everything written in my stament was written and signed by same police, the write-up was composed and the writter(police) in life camp abuja labeled me a criminal who has boys that i sent for operation, if God was not was not real i would have been in jail or probably shot dead by now, i was later transfered to abature, but on the day of my transfer was when i came out, since then, i started hateing black uniforms for no reason , most police know the truth, but toture pple to accept what they never did, God help nigeria..!

That is why we are trying to cross all tis and dot all iis

HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH IT WHEN YOU KNOW YOU HAVE BEEN FORCED BY THE POLICE TO INCRIMINATE YOURSELF IN A STATEMENT YOU WROTE?

https://www.nairaland.com/3355687/how-deal-it-when-know

HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH IT WHEN YOU KNOW YOU HAVE BEEN FORCED BY THE POLICE TO INCRIMINATE YOURSELF IN A STATEMENT YOU WROTE?

After nearly 25 years of absence, I resumed the practice of law in Nigeria a couple of years ago. There is one thing I see often in the criminal justice system in Nigeria. It is that the accused person says that the statement being tendered in evidence as his statement was actually not something he voluntarily wrote - that the police or the EFCC, or NDLEA, DSS, etc forced him to write what he wrote. In other words, the accused person is saying that he did not freely give the statement or that the contents of the statement he wrote was not the truth he intended to write, but that he wrote it because he was threatened or tortured.

In law, we say that such statement is not voluntary. A statement must have to be voluntary in order for the court to accept it in evidence. There are two aspects to voluntariness. First, the making of the statement must be something you chose to do, regardless of the content. Second, the contents of the statement must be something you voluntarily wrote about what happened. It is possible to volunteer to make a statement, but you are forced to add contents against your wish. In either case, any of these forms of involuntariness will prevent the statement you made from being accepted in evidence.

Why would you worry about the content of your statement not being voluntary? It is usually because it contains information against you. We say that such statement or information is incriminating because it amounts to admission that you did something wrong or that you did something which implicates you as guilty or responsible for a crime. And why would the police pressure you or force you to make a statement against yourself? Simple: They want you to make it easy for them to prove the case against you by simply saying you admitted to the incriminating facts.

Among the evidence the court could use against you in criminal trials, your own statement voluntarily made is about the strongest evidence against you. In fact, if you admit all the relevant facts that constitute the elements of the crime, your admission would amount to a confession and when there is a confession, there is no need for any trial. They court will simply find you guilty based on your confession and sentence you immediately. It is very difficult to reverse on appeal a conviction based on a confession, once the confession was not freely given. Well, there is a difference between a confessionary statement and a mere admission of incriminating fact and a confession made in court before a judge. Let's not worry about the difference. Let's focus on the fact that you were forced to make a statement you did not wish to make or to assert a fact in your statement that you did not wish to assert.

Now, let me draw your attention (particularly, the lawyers here) to a critical difference. The problem with your statement is not primarily whether it is true or false. Rather, it is whether you made it voluntarily or whether you were forced to make it. If it was not made voluntarily, the court will not consider whether it is true or false. Unfortunately, even among good police officers, they tend to focus on whether the statement was true. And they think that as long as they are forcing you to say the truth, there is nothing wrong with that. But there is everything wrong with that. The statement must be freely given, regardless of the truthfulness or otherwise of it

However, after it is determined that a statement was freely given, it will be important to consider if the content is true. In other words, the court will not accept a statement as true, if there are other pieces of evidence that clearly show it is false or if it states something the court has judicial notice of as impossible. For instance, let us say I make a statement with the police and claim that I had lunch last week with Zik and Awolo and I murdered both of them. The fact that I made such statement voluntarily does not mean the court should accept it as true or valid.

I do know that for some reasons (good and bad) the Nigerian police tend to force suspects to makes statements against their will. I remember the day I was to make a statement after being arrested by the EFCC. The officers taking my statement begged me to admit that I would pay back 1.5 million dollars to the Nigerian Government. I told them no, I would not make such admission because there was no basis for me to pay back because I did not owe them money. Instead they owed me money. The officers begged me. They explained to me that all they wanted was for me to make such statement in order for Mrs. Farida Waziri to please the Ambassador. And that they knew I should not pay back, but that I should make that statement and then I would be released and I would go back to America and if I did not come back to Nigeria, nobody would do anything about it. I refused to make such statement. I was detained for 90 days because of my refusal.

Detaining me for 90 days was pressure. They wanted to force me to make an incriminating statement. But I was able to resist. So, my explanation here is only to show that I have personal knowledge of the police pressuring suspects to make a statement against their interest, which could hurt them in court.

Now, let me make another important distinctions for our lawyers here. A statement is voluntary, even if it was suggested to you and even if you were deceived into making it. For instance, if the police officer tells you to admit that you did it so that he would beg the complainant and settle the case, and you make such statement, the statement is indeed voluntary. You were not forced. You made it believing certain outcomes. The reason you made a statement is not the test of whether it was voluntary unless that reasons was force or threat of force or undue and unlawful incarceration. Many people confuse this. They think that because they deceived them into making the statement, the statement is not voluntary. A voluntary statement is one you made without force or pressure, and not the one you made out of a mistaken assumption of outcomes or out of deception.

Anyway, let's go to what you should do when you have been forced to make a statement. The EFCC will usually detain you and abuse your rights until you give them the type of statement they want. Once that happens, they will release you believing that your conviction will be easy based on that statement. And that will be the case unless you take the following steps immediately you regain your freedom.

You must immediately retain a lawyer to challenge the statement, not to prepare to defend you at trial, even though he will still challenge the statement at trial. Yes, one popular way to challenge a statement for involuntariness is to wait in court till that moment when the prosecutor tries to introduce your statement into evidence. Your lawyer will then challenge it on the ground of involuntariness and the court will conduct a trial within trial to determine whether the statement was voluntary or not. But this is very risky and it is not really the best way to handle such situations. We, that are involved in criminal trials in Nigeria, know that the court will accept the police or EFCC side on this matter 90% of the time.

Therefore, in dealing with involuntary statements, do not wait until the criminal trial has commenced. And even if there is never a trial, you still have the problem that there is a statement somewhere implicating your client. Once your client has informed you that he was forced to give a statement, you should write a letter to the police protesting the statement. Let them know that your client's rights were abused after his arrest. Protest vehemently and demand action. Then file a fundamental right enforcement action at a Federal High Court against the police authority or EFCC to enforce your client's fundamental rights. There is a good chance that you will prevail here. The chances of winning here is 50%, which is higher than 10% if you wait till criminal trial. So, insist that your lawyer do something to fight against the fact the police have a statement you were forced to make. The trial under the fundamental rights enforcement procedure could be much better than the trial within trial in criminal proceedings.

Finally, I use this opportunity to share with our members and lawyers alike. If a person informs you that the police have invited him because of an incident, take him to your office and ask him to give you a statement of what happened. (Video-tape the interview if possible) Let your client make a statement before he goes to meet the police. That statement will be useful in showing that any statement he may be forced to give the police was forced and involuntary. It will impress the judge that your client rendered a complete account of what happened in your office and signed it before meeting the police and that the statement he gave the police is completely different from what he gave you. This is the magic. Try it. You see that the police will be too ashamed to produce the forced statement they obtained in their office.

Finally, finally, when you make a statement in the police station or EFCC office, the statement will contain on the top a cautionary statement saying that you were not forced to make the statement and that you did so voluntarily. Don't worry about that. That statement is not valid evidence that the statement you made was voluntary. The reason is because if you were forced to lie against yourself in the statement you wrote, you would have been forced o sign that you were not forced in the same statement.

Happy weekend, and stay informed.

https://web./DPA.Member/permalink/641137799389059/

nnamdiosu:
Bros trust me.....it'd just by the grace of God....not becos u sabi book. There r some policemen who no send u. Just pray you don't land into their trap. U think its every police station u go to that they ask for your statement? Or u don't know that there ate some statuon once u enter...and don't get bailed within a week they shoot the person and sell his parts to ritualists.yrd. in this Nigeria o. See bro just take this prayer point everyday...that God should prevent ur path from cross any police man.

Hahahahaahaha, I pray so

Please who can help me with the link on how to report an issue to the moderators because the link and the picture he uploaded is not the real writer, it was because of the link that the writer paused abit.

bolabolabo:
how did u do it??

you father must be a politician...

None of the above just that "the Due Process Group" taught me all the ways to handle some policemen and their illegalities. One good thing about the Nigerian Police is that the ASPs and above are educated, once you tell your IPO that you want to see the DPO or the Area commander, he will start treating you with respect cos their reason for arresting you will implicate them, to be on a safer side, just search for any DPA centre in your environment and the Police will respect you.

xreal:
Op
you didn't remind us not ti waste their sheets.

They tell you to squeeze your writing.
Write two sentences on a space meant for one sentence.
They say, no paragraphs.
If possible they say no spacing.

Are all these instructions above supposed to be so?
Or na Buhari no provide stationeries (writing paper sheets) for police force?

Somebody has answered your question above just search for it, the reason for not leaving a space and no-paragraphing is for your own good cos any Police man that wants to implicate you will squeeze something in that space and paragraph that you left

Carter4luv:
i fear police pass armed robbers. policeman who ready to shoot u cuz of #50

We can still make the changes, just find any DPA centre near you and your problems with the Police are solved cos the Nigerian Police are afraid of the name Barr. Emeka Ugwuonye of 'The Due Process Advocates'.

WinningSun:
thanks. this your signature you get thread for it.

No sir cos i am not an internet marketer.

benpuzzy:
(C) Emeka Ugwuonye

https://m.facebook.com/sitippe/photos/a.523897740993534.1073741827.516399581743350/1064502600266376/?type=3&refid=18&_ft_=qid.6331353721649718140%3Amf_story_key.643687219134117%3Atl_objid.643687219134117&__tn__=%2As

Pix - CSP Cornellia Nwawe, PPRO Akwa Ibom State Police Command

Please my moderators, the link and picture you posted above is not the original poster, the person you copied, copied from Barr. Emeka Ugwuonye, just check the link attached and see more interventions from his group. Please just do the needful in the name of God

https://web./DPA.Member/permalink/639681456201360/

WinningSun:
what can I do if police stop me in a lonely road at night. can I claim my right .
if they demand for Money.

Don't give them a dime as long as it it not late hour, if they ask you to follow them to the station just obey, and when it is time for statement writing, just follow the steps above

We can still make things right, and it all starts from me and you, forget about the delay and learn how to his any police man at his danger zone, as long as you do not commit any crime. #Nigeriagobetter#

sorepco:
I tell u. We have to be careful with the police. Obe stopped me the other day and asked that we drove to their station. Asked him y he just said ..de go oga...when he got there he brought out a plain sheet of paper n said i should sign. I ssid for what and he was like uf u want comot here just sign. I refused n he delayed me for 1 hr.

Another policeman came in and whispred to him. He suddenly said de go. I told him i de go oga office. The fool started begging!!

That is the spirit, some of these low ranked police guys does all the illegalities without the concent and knowledge of their Ogas

olaric:
Highly educative, police remains Nigeria' biggest problem. The best thing is to pray against going to the station...

The problem we have is that people are always afraid when they hear the name "Police or police Station". Good a thing we have Human right Lawyers now that are ready to fight for you free of charge once you are innocent.

ULSHERLAN:
If you've been taken to the station before then you will know that the writeup doesnt really apply. Most times, these men just forcefully tell people what to write. A friend was slapped continously for not writing what they were dictating to him.

Because that friend of yours doesn't know his right. I have succeeded to gain the respect of some of the police men in my area because i know even more than what they know. One tried to bite more than he can chew few days ago and landed himself into police cell for two days, he avoided my area for few days after his release cos he said it was a disgrace for a civilian to cause the detention of a policeman.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW WHEN DIRECTED BY THE POLICE TO WRITE A STATEMENT:

If the police ask you to write a statement, which they normally do when they stop you on the road and take you to their station or when they invite you to their station, you should know how to write a good statement that will not implicate you.

First, whether you write a statement as a witness or as a suspect, you must understand that your statement is very likely going to be used against you either in court or for the purpose of blackmail by some officers (not all). Therefore, take your statement writing as a serious matter.

Remember that you have right to refuse to write a statement until your lawyer is present. But this normally leads to argument and hostile reactions from the police, and it may likely be a pretext for them not releasing you immediately.

There are no hard and fast rules as to the content of a statement. It is supposed to be what you know in relation to an incident or the reason for you being brought to the station. Since the statement is not just a general view on anything you like, it is important that you know the reason for which you have been brought to the station.

For those who have been suspected of committing an offense, make sure that before you start writing a statement, you ask the officer the offense for which you have been brought to the station. If he tells you that there is no offense, that they just want you to tell them all you know, you can politely say: No, Sir. The police force is meant to enforce the criminal law. Therefore, the police would not have any justification to bring you to the station except if they suspect that an offense has been committed somewhere by somebody - either you or someone else. And you need to know the offense and the person suspected before you could write your statement.

Also, if you were arrested or invited as a result of a petition written against you, you must demand to read carefully that petition before you start giving your statement.

When you start your statement, make sure you explain in your statement the reason for which you have been asked to make your statement. For instance, you can say something like: "I was stopped while driving my vehicle with registration number xxxxx on ________ street in _______ city. After showing my papers to officer xxxxxxx, I was taken to the police station and informed that my car was suspected of being stolen car"

Then you make your statement. You will see that the police will not like this. But you should be able to state the summary of the circumstances that led to you having to make a statement in the station.

I will say more about writing statements at police stations. For now, just get the idea that you should explain why you are making a statement and the offenses you were told you were suspected of. You should state that in your statement before you begin to write other things

POST SCRIPT: The reason you have to state in your statement the reason for making a statement is obvious. Your statement when read by a third party can only make sense in the context of the matter that prompted the statement. So, if you didn't state the matter to which your statement relates, the police may change the matter down the line. Initially, you thought you were arrested because of stolen vehicle, but the police later charged it to kidnapping. If a judge is reading your statement in a kidnapping case, he will think you were evading the issues. He will think you were dodging the matter that you don't want to answer the question. And he will form a negative opinion of you based on your presumably inconclusive and evasive statement . So be careful and be wise

(C) Emeka Ugwuonye

https://m.facebook.com/sitippe/photos/a.523897740993534.1073741827.516399581743350/1064502600266376/?type=3&refid=18&_ft_=qid.6331353721649718140%3Amf_story_key.643687219134117%3Atl_objid.643687219134117&__tn__=%2As

Pix - CSP Cornellia Nwawe, PPRO Akwa Ibom State Police Command

Hope this is not because of the purported 2017 council election, it will not work this time around because he has once deceived us with the creation of "Autonomous communities' after 2015 election and that is an old story now.

The change promised Nigerians is intended to be institutional, not this grand campaign for exceptional individualism. The problem is not the person, it's the institution. Institutions aren't made by people, they are made by rules, rules hard to bend.
Have you ever paused to ponder why Nigerians beat traffic lights in Abuja but obey traffic rules in London? It's because the UK institutions are strong. So, the change we anticipate must begin with institutions changing people.
Telling some people that change begins with them is like telling a robber to stop stealing. No, you've to build a strong Police to change him. Citizens are often only as good and as incorruptible as the country wants them to be, through its institutions.
Even God didn't get His creations to worship Him with words alone. He revealed penalty for refusing to change to His ways. The penalty is blazing Hell hereafter.
An expatriate friend, an Australian, beats traffic lights in Abuja, and he actually once described it as fun. He'll never try it in his country. Why? It's not patriotism. Words like "change begins with me" will never stop people from obeying traffic rules. To achieve this, you need surveillance cameras and strong penalising institutions.
Wait, why do you think Americans are afraid of evading tax? It's the horror of having to deal with IRS. It's not patriotism. Who's afraid of FIRS? Definitely not the Nigerian big man who's sure of his ability to make phone calls and get any case against him dropped!
So change should begin with the President addressing institutional lapses like the employment scams at CBN and FIRS, and apologising to the nation for condoning nepotism.

Rochals has started looking for those he will send to their early graves again...... Imo people be wise

I never knew of the above until i logged on to Nigeria Web Diary, Seun congrats and thanks to me and other Nigerians that made you attain this height.

ok

That one nah sure-Banker

Thanks for that.

News

Ok

ok

This hungerbad, na wa to uoooooooo

hope dey

He no sabi pose for pix

Haba