Criminal Procedure – before a witness testifies in a criminal trial in appropriate circumstances an inquiry must be held into whether he or she understands the nature and import of the oath or affirmation as provided in ss 162(1) and 163 of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 – where a witness is found not to understand the nature and import of the oath or affirmation due to intellectual incapacity an inquiry must be held in terms of s 164 of that Act into whether he or she understands the difference between truth and falsehood - failure of trial court to hold an inquiry into whether a mentally ill witness understands the difference between truth and falsehood renders the evidence of that witness inadmissible.
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