EXAMINING THE EFFICACY OF SECTION 6 OF THE PCA “IGNORANCE OF THE LAW IS NO DEFENSE”

EXAMINING THE EFFICACY OF SECTION 6 OF THE PCA “IGNORANCE OF THE LAW IS NO DEFENSE”.

               Ignorance of the law is no defense is quite an adage that has since stood the test of time in most commonwealth jurisdictions. And Uganda being amongst a plethora of them, possesses as a principle the aforementioned maxim in its laws particularly provided for under Section 6 of the penal code act, Cap 120.

The effect of this provision is that once a suspect is indicted, he or she shall face the wrath of the law irrespective of whether or not he or she had prior knowledge that his or her actions are forbidden by a certain law. Thus whether or not the accused knew that his actions are actionable under the laws of the land is immaterial. Suffice to say that the rationale behind the enactment of such a maxim, was to cure the mischief of the accused people who plead baseless defenses in order to escape the ire of the law.                                                                                           

         Basing on this, it would be worth noting that it is as much pertinent for the ruled to be educated about the various laws which govern their day to day transactions as it is apposite for them to obey the same.

The purpose of this rather precise article is to scrupulously demonstrate how important it is for the people to know the laws that govern them as it is for them to obey.                                                        

         It has been said that the power of the state arises from the consent of those whom the state governs, however the hidden truth is that all state power derives from laws alone although one would argue that since laws are enacted by legislators as representatives of the people, the legislators in effect represent the consent of the governed.  Laws create and justify the states actions, in effect laws make up the state and indeed, “without law, no state would exist”.                                      

           To the extent people know the laws of the state and consent to their enactment and enforcement, the state is just because it is truly consensual. If the laws are either uncertain or unknown to the governed, then the state has rather paramount a task to put to right where it’s lacking and effectuate the publication of any newly enacted laws that affect the people’s activities.

In Uganda, the main source of the newly enacted laws is the Uganda gazette but however one would rightly question the number of people amongst Uganda’s population has access to the Uganda gazette. My guess is that a few curious and literate class do. What then happens to highest percentage of the illiterate class that hardly get access to the Uganda gazette yet they’re all expected to obey the same law?                                                                                          

              Reference can be taken to the recently enacted Land acquisition act, cap 226 which was enacted to regulate the compulsory taking of individual land by the government for public purposes. To some extent, this law faced a rather hostile reception from the public and its enactment arose questions including but not limited to whether the government intended to publicize all land as it were in the 1970’s with the effect of depriving people of their sole source of living. The hostility can be evidenced by the demonstrations that followed its implementation for example the demonstrations that took place in Northern Uganda in 2014. Clearly, this was an indication that the people were unaware of the law not because of their deed, but because of the inefficiency in the publication of the said law.

              In the same vein, many people seek to reform the world based on an unstructured vision of future happiness informed by the principles of utilitarianism. However, they hardly realize that the path to that future depends to abiding by a certain set of principles. Since they’re unaware of the principles of the law, they often act without due regard to the self-evident truths set forth for us by the law such as this, and in most cases the results are dire.

             Despite their well-intentioned search for peace and prosperity, they fail to appreciate the consequences of acting outside the principles of the law that govern their actions which law ultimately determine the outcome of those actions. Being goal oriented and motivated by their innate intelligence, they strive to achieve their goals irrespective of the means through which they do so. They’re too focused on the outcome and too willing to accept whatever means are offered as expedients rather than having recourse to the law simply because they’re unaware that their actions although morally right and developmental, are prohibited by the laws of the land.

       This therefore makes public legal education and awareness a moral imperative, for it is only through this that the laws enacted by the parliament can be known to the public; both the illiterate and the literate class, the rural and the urban based and their exercise by the state deemed just. It is my humble opinion therefore that states should pay more attention in educating people about the laws that govern their actions and the consequences of failure to obey any such laws. Unless the citizens know about the laws that give the state power to regulate their day to day activities, the consent that would validate the state’s power is to that extent not informed consent.                                

Consent by force or ignorance is not consent at all.

MUGABI     HORACE                                                                                                                  Horacekun@gmail.com