JOHN IWUAYA OKONJI V. THE STATE

NNAMANI, JSC (Delivering the Leading Judgment): The appellant herein was charged in the High Court, Kano with the following offence.

"That you, John Iwuaya Okonji, on or about the 4th day of May, 1982 at Sabon Gari Kano within Kano Judicial Division did commit culpable homicide punishable with death in that you caused the death of Lawal Mohammed by doing an act to wit: stabbing him in the stomach with a piece of broken bottle with the knowledge that his death would be the probable consequence of your act and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 221(b) of the Penal Code"

To this charge the accused pleaded not guilty. On the 19th July, 1983, after 3 witnesses for the prosecution had given evidence, Miss Maryam Wali, now Acting Senior State Counsel applied, as she was entitled to do, under Sections 207 and 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code for an amendment of the charge by replacing the words in the charge "with a piece of broken bottle" with the words "with a knife." …