Section 172, The Criminal Procedure Act, 2024

(1) A Court may defer passing sentence on a convictedperson where the - (a) maximum sentence of the offence in respect of which the person is convicted does not exceed 2 years; (b) convicted person consents to deferment of the sentence; and (c) Court is satisfied, having regard to the nature of the offence and the character and circumstances of the convicted person, it would be in the interest of justice to exercise the power. (2) A deferment of a sentence under subsection (1), shall- (a) be to a date specified by the Court which date shall not be more than 6 months after the date so specified; and (b) not to be further deferred except in cases where the convicted person is pregnant; or (c) the convicted person applies for further deferment for special or specific reasons. (3) Where a Court defers passing sentence on a convicted person under subsection (1), it shall not, on the same occasion, remand him in custody. (4) The Court shall, when passing of sentence on a convicted person is deferred, deal with the person, at the end of the period of deferment, in a way in which it could have dealt with him if it had not deferred passing sentence. (5) Nothing in this section dealing with a deferred sentence or in section 175 dealing with the commission of an offence after a conditional discharge, shall affect the power of - (a) the High Court to bind over a convicted person to come up for judgment when called upon; or (b) a Court to defer passing sentence for any purpose for which it may lawfully do so apart from this section.