TheNigeriaLawyer published a short write up today (via the link https://thenigerialawyer.com/life-sentence-does-not-mean-imprisonment-for-life/) wherein Mr. Arome Abu, the Managing Partner of Abu & Olaniyan Partners said that In Nigeria, sentence of Life Imprisonment is equivalent to imprisonment for 20 Years.

He relies on section 70 of the Penal Code and Section 468 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015. Interestingly the author admitted the absence of an identical provision in the Criminal Code which is applicable to the South.

The implication of Mr. Abu’s position is that once a convict who was sentenced to life imprisonment spends 20 years in prison, he is entitled to be released. Can this be the true position of the law? In other words, does Mr. Abu’s interpretation represent the contemplation of the legislature? With profound respect, I beg to differ. For all purposes, imprisonment for life must, prima facie, be treated as imprisonment till person’s death.

SECTION 70 OF THE PENAL CODE

Section 70 of the Penal Code relied upon by the author provides as follows:

“In calculating fractions of terms of punishment, imprisonment for life shall be reckoned as equivalent to imprisonment for twenty years.”

The above section is clear and unambiguous. It does not say that imprisonment for life shall be deemed to be imprisonment for 20 years. This section comes into play only when fractions of terms of punishment are to be calculated. Consequently, a convict undergoing imprisonment for life is not entitled to claim release from the prison after he has served the sentence for twenty years.

It should be noted that Penal Code was borrowed from India and the above section is a word by word a replica of section 57 of the Indian Penal Code. Not just India, the provision is also similar to that of Bangladesh, Uganda, Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan, Myanmar (Burma) etc. except Malaysia which has a slightly different provision. The interpretation of the above provision has come up before courts in the countries above for interpretation.

In India for example, their chief case law on this issue is Gopal Vinayak Godse v. The State of Maharashtra and others (1961), 3 SCR 440. In this case, the convict petitioner relied on section 57 of the Indian Penal Code (which is in pari materia with the Nigerian Penal Code) and contended that as the term of imprisonment actually served by him exceeded 20 years, his further detention in jail was illegal and prayed to be freed. Repelling such a contention, the Supreme Court of India held that “sentence of imprisonment for life is not for any definite period and the imprisonment for life must, prima facie, be treated as imprisonment for the whole of the remaining period of the convicted person’s natural life.”

In Subash Chander V. Krishan Lal, (2001) 4 SCC 458, the court considered the length of life imprisonment, while going over the precedents germane to the question and observed as follows:

“Section 57 of the Indian Penal Code has no real bearing on the question raised before us. For calculating fractions of terms of punishment the section provides that transportation for life shall be regarded as equivalent to imprisonment for twenty years. It does not say that transportation for life shall be deemed to be transportation for twenty years…. A sentence of transportation for life or imprisonment for life must prima facie be treated as transportation or imprisonment for the whole of the remaining period of the convicted person’s natural life.”

See also the recent Indian case of Union of India v. Sree Horan, (2016) 7 SCC 1, where fraction of

The Chief Justice of Bangladesh in Ataur Mridha v State (Criminal Appeal No. 15-16/2010, decided on 14 February 2017) elucidated further that section 57 is applicable to cases where the court would need to award sentence in terms of fractions of sentence prescribed for a principal offence. He said for instance sedition is punishable with imprisonment for life. If somebody attempts sedition but fails, the Penal Code would not define the punishment expressly. Rather would require the court to award a sentence of maximum half of life imprisonment prescribed for the principal offence (sedition). But what is “half” of one’s life? This time the section 57 would step in. Reckoning “life imprisonment” as thirty years imprisonment, a half-fraction of “life imprisonment” for this case would be fifteen years. The AD here holds that except helping us determine the fractions applicable to offenses like above, section 57 has no other role to play with the tenure of life imprisonment as such. Life imprisonment therefore means “imprisonment for the natural duration of a convict’s life” (see pp. 50-51 of the judgment).

It is interesting to note that even when we come back to Nigeria, section 3 of the Kaduna State Penal Code law, 2017 in respect of life sentence provides as follows:

“Life Imprisonment” means imprisonment for the rest of the life of a convict;

SECTION 468 OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT, 2015

ACJA too which Mr. ABU relies on has not itself fixed a definite term for life imprisonment. Rather, what it makes provision for is REMISSION. Remission is just a way of rewarding good behavior of a prisoner by applying for the reduction or suspension of his remaining jail term. For the avoidance of doubt, the section provides thus:

Where the Comptroller-General of Prisons makes a report to the court recommending that a prisoner:
(a) sentenced and serving his sentence in prison is of good behaviour; and

(b) has served at least one third of his prison term, if he is sentenced to imprisonment for a term of at least fifteen years or where he is sentenced to life imprisonment, the court may, after hearing the prosecution and the prisoner or his legal representative, order that the remaining term of his imprisonment be

suspended, with or without conditions, as the court considers fit, and the prisoner shall be released from prison on the order.

In the light of the foregoing, life sentence is, as the name suggests, incarceration forever unless the prisoner is pardoned or is granted remission.

O. G. Chukkol is a final year student, Faculty of Law, ABU, Zaria and may be reached via [email protected] or 08032470318