The subsequent re-arrest and detention without an Arrest Warrant, or a Detention
Order or even being informed of the reasons upon which the arrest and detention
is made, and keeping the Applicant in custody for 7 Months
without being
charged to Court is unknown to our laws, against the principle of Natural Justice,
a contravention of the internationally guaranteed right to personal liberty, as well
as other fundamental rights.
In the General Observation No. 13 regarding the “Equality before the Courts and
the right of every person to be heard publicly by a competent Tribunal established
by law (Art. 14)”, the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations stated
that:
The right to be informed
“without
delay’
of the charges
requires that the
information be provided in the form described as soon as the accusation is
formulated by a competent authority; in the Committee’s opinion, this right must
appear when, during the course of an investigation, a Tribunal or an Authority of
the Office of the Public Prosecutor decides to adopt procedural measures against
a person suspicious of having committed a crime or designated publicly as such.
The
specific
demands
of section
(a) of paragraph
3 may
be
satisfied by
formulating the accusation either verbally or in writing, as long as they include
both the law and the alleged facts on which the information is based.
As earlier noted the right to personal liberty is one of the most fundamental
human rights recognized under International Human Rights Law
Section 41 of the Nigerian constitution provides:
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