Justice
Minister Abubabcarr Marie Tambedou has called on the Gambia Bar Association to
collectively join him and the Ministry of Justice in restoring public
confidence in the Justice delivery system.
According
to the new Justice minister, restoring public confidence in the justice
delivery system is uppermost on his mind.
He
was addressing members of the Gambia Bar Association yesterday at Court Number
one room at the High Court complex in Banjul.
The
meeting gave members of the Bar association the opportunity to welcome the new
minister, as well as have a one-on-one discussion with him with regard to the
dispensation of justice and related issues in The Gambia.
The
members of the bar described the meeting as one they had never witnessed over
the past two decades.
Justice
minister Tambadou said restoring public confidence in the Justice delivery
system is uppermost on his mind.
“It
is our collective responsibility. I look forward to your personal and
professional support in achieving this,” he said.
He
said the Gambia government recognizes the leadership role the Gambia Bar
Association played in ensuring that the democratic will of the Gambian people
was respected.
These
demonstrated the crucial and leadership role that the Gambia Bar Association
must continue to play in order to consolidate the democratic gains made so far,
and it has a moral responsibility to do so, he added.
“I
invite the Bar to take ownership of the law reform process, particularly reform
of the criminal justice system, and to submit proposals for consideration by
the ministry.”
This
could be in a comprehensive paper on the various options open to the ministry
for engaging the Bar in this process, and the Bar must take advantage of this
window of opportunity and identify the roles that envisage the private bar in
the law reform process.
The
new Justice minister added: “We all share one common objective, and that is to
ensure ‘timely’ delivery of justice in every case.
“But
while every effort shall be made to ensure timely delivery of justice, I once
heard senior counsel SBS Janneh saying that even though we all tend to believe
that justice delayed is justice denied, sometimes justice has to be delayed so
that it will not be denied.”
The
justice minister further stated: “I am aware that there is a lot of desire to
see things operate in the way they should in a functional democracy. I share
that desire very strongly, but I also urge you to exercise patience and
understanding. This is a journey of fundamental reforms which will target the
root causes of the challenges we now face in our justice system.”
He
called upon each and every one to embrace the challenge of their generation
thrust upon them by the demands of their time.
“Let
us show the world that we have some of the most qualified and competent lawyers
capable of taking care of our own business for our own justice system in our
own country.
“Let
us make this change a meaningful one for all of us, otherwise we shall have no
justification to complain if we fail to answer the call to national duty when
assistance is sought elsewhere. So let us help ourselves and spare our people
the agony of having others decide their fate.”
Also
speaking was senior counsel Surahata Janneh, doyen of the Bar, who said for the
past 22 years he had not seen an Attorney General coming to address the Bar
soon after his appointment.
“You need to be reminded that we have in the
past foreign Chief Justices, numerous foreign judges and magistrates. The
Judiciary of the Gambia had been owned by foreigners,” he said.
It has been on the internet and everywhere
that the Supreme Court could not be constituted due to the fact that all those
appointed are foreigners which, he said, was shocking to him, as if the Gambia
Bar is not capable of providing judges.
Senior
counsel A.N.D. Bensouda, said for the past two decades the county’s
jurisprudence had been lost as to who they are as a people.
All
the judgments delivered had been lost, and now they have citations from the
Nigerian cases, adding that there is a lot that needs to be done on that.
She
added that transparency and accountability is key, and it is very important
that the independence of the judiciary is reinstated and transparency and
accountability is encouraged.
“I
would like to assure you of our support,” she added.
Also
speaking was senior counsel A.A.B. Gaye, who said that the Justice minister was
attending the meeting with the Bar was very significant, as in past years they
hardly have an Attorney General come to their meetings.
“We
were perceived as anti-government; that is why the AG does not attend our
meetings. We also expect that you will not be stolen from us by the executive.
You are a lawyer, and we expect you to remain a lawyer and a leader of both the
public and private bar.”
He
said what had happened then was that the judiciary had been hijacked by the
executive, and the judiciary had not been independent since 1994.
