11
!-
operate so that things
will
be easy for him (which
I do not believj
anything of substance relating to the charge which the "PW?"
questioned him about.
Undoubtedly, it has been held in several cases, including decisions
of the Apex Court, that a confession recorded by a question and answer
session may not be regarded as free and
voluntary.
See Namsoh
Vs
State (1993) 6 SCNJ (Pt 1) 55 @ 66-77 where Kutugi JSC (as he then
was) observed:
"Exhibit
66H"
was a product of the questions and answer
section between the two of them, the police recorder "PWT"
.
was putting questions already prepared by his superior on a
sheet of paper to the Appellant, while
the'?W7"
also
recorded the answers. This procedure is already wrong ... I
cannot see horv a statement such as Exhibit o'H" herein will
be regarded as free and voluntary when
it is evide,nt that the
so called evidence was as a result of questions selected and
put to the accused by the police officer himself'
See as
Salawu Ys State (2009) LPELR (CA) 41-42.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, I do not understand the law on the
point to mean that whenever an officer asks a Defendant any question
and he answers in the process of recording a statement from him,
it
automatically renders the statement involuntary and inadmissible.
It
.-
musl necessarily depend on whether the questions are oppressive and
d