The time stipulations in the constitutional and other statutory provisions relating to the right to personal liberty in Nigeria are vague and consequently incalculable such that several aspects of the right and other allied rights are essentially rendered nugatory. Lack of respect for, amongst others, the rights to the dignity of the human person and fair hearing are both by-products of the abuse of these time stipulations. Given the significance of these rights, the right to personal liberty,

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... f improperly managed, can be the eye sore of a nation's human rights profile and be responsible for the low esteem in which prospects for the realization of rights are held in any jurisdiction. Regrettably, the issue of vague time stipulations, partly due to a deficit in the political will to act, is an age-old problem that also spans numerous jurisdictions. The problem is particularly intractable in the countries of the developing world in view of the weak systemic and attitudinal disposition towards these rights. The imperative is to refine and, where necessary, redefine the jurisprudence relating to time stipulations as an aid both to practitioners and the subjects of these stipulations by strengthening their legal and constitutional base. The article is designed as a blueprint for the adoption of jurisdictions that are confronted with the problem. 'The only possible measure for the legitimacy of the state is provided by the positivised human rights'.-HJ Sandkuhler 1