A.T. & E. CO. LTD. V. FEDERAL MILITARY GOVT

• Pages: 334-338

334

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NIGERIAN SUPREME COURT CASES

[1968] N.S.C.C.

courts it must now, since 1963, be read in conjunction with section 161 for native

courts and so doing if a court following closely, as it should, the wording of sec-

tion 161 and asks an accused "are you guilty or have you any defence to make?"

no problem arises. Here, however, the native court did not use the specific words

"or have you any defence to make?" it clearly put the alternative to the accused of

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5

denying that he committed the offence. We consider this a sufficient compliance

with section 161, though it would have been much better, as we have indicated, to

follow the wording more closely, and in our view as the opportunity to plead that

he did not commttt the offence was squarely given to the accused and he chose

freely to admit that he had committed the offence then the requirements of section

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10

389 did not come into play. If the accused had pleaded that he did not commit

the offence then in our view it would have been a requirement binding on the na-

tive court to comply with the provisions of sections 389 of the Criminal Procedure

Code and call upon the accused to state his defence and give the names and

whereabouts of any witness he intended to call, but section 389 need not in our

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15

view be complied with when section 161 has first been complied with and follow-

ing thereon the accused has pleaded guilty, That being so it is not necessary for

us to consider the application by the High Court of section 382 of the Criminal

Procedure Code as this only arose because the High Court thought that it was

necessary to comply with section 389, which in the circumstances here we have

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20

indicated is not in our view the case.

Mr. Brown-Peterside abandoned his appeal against the sentence being ex-

cessive and we see no merit in his argument on another ground of appeal that the

age of the prosecutrix was not proved as in our view there was clear unrebutted

evidence that she was 7 years old. The appeal is accordingly dismissed.

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25

Appeal dismissed.

A.T. & E. CO. LTD. V. FEDERAL MILITARY GOVT.

30

THE AUTOMATIC TELEPHONE

AND ELECTRIC COMPANY LTD.



RESPONDENT/APPELLANT

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35

V

THE FEDERAL MILITARY GOVERNMENT

OF

THE

REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA



CLAIMANT/RESPONDENT

SUIT NO. SC 143/1968

SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA

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40

ADEMOLA,



C.J.N.

COKER,



J.S.C.

LEWIS,



J.S.C.

MADARIKAN,



J.S.C.

31st December, 1968.

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45

Appeals - to Supreme Court (Civil) - Rights of appeal - High Court opinion on

questions of law referred by Arbitrator - Whether any appeal lies therefrom.

Arbitration - Right of appeal from High Court opinion on case stated by Arbitrator

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50

Words and Phrases - "Opinion" in S.15 of Arbitration Act synonymous with

"decision".