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toubab1020
12314 Posts |
 Posted - 02 Jan 2010 : 16:28:01
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What is happening here,witnesses with no phones! witnesses with no addresses? and telling a senior civil servant that he faces a contempt charge if he dosn't do as the Judge tells him,are things changing,Has that great Judge Moses Richards been having Attaya with Joseph Wowo ,? I wonder,any way, this from The Observer so it must be alright:
http://observer.gm/africa/gambia/article/prison-boss-urged-to-assist-alleged-murder-suspect
FULL STORY
Thursday, 31 December 2009
Justice Joseph Wowo of the High Court in Banjul has urged the director general of the Gambia Prisons Service, David Colley to assist one Samuel Joel Mayombeh to communicate with his relatives.
The accused (A Ghanaian), who is standing trial on a murder charge since 2007, had informed the High Court that since he was incarcerated he has not communicated to his relatives and that they do not know his whereabouts. The prosecution had opened its case, the third prosecution witness has testified but is yet to be cross examined by the defence counsel. After the evidence in chief of the first prosecution witness, the evidence of the second and third prosecution witnesses were interposed because the first witness had to travel out of the jurisdiction.
The prosecution disclosed that two of the listed prosecution witnesses: Abdou Razi and Pascal may have left the jurisdiction or changed their phone numbers on the file, because their numbers have not been going through; thus rendering the case stalled. During the last sitting, the accused told the court that he wished to communicate with his relatives.
Justice Joseph Wowo ordered Sgt Lamin Korta of the prison authorities to inform the director general of the Gambia Prisons Service to allow the accused to communicate with his relatives without delay. If by the next adjourned date, the director general of Prison Service fail to comply with the court order; to allow the accused communicate with his relatives, the court will have no option but to charge him for contempt, he concluded.
Author: by Sidiq Asemota
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"Simple is good" & I strongly dislike politics. You cannot defend the indefensible.
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kayjatta
2978 Posts |
Posted - 04 Jan 2010 : 07:15:38
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Judges (courts) are indeed powerful. They have enormous authority to protect the rights of individuals and other entities.
But sadly, Justice Wowo and the like utilize these constitutionally vested powers (of the judiciary) in only selected cases.
In the case of political detainees and prisoners, where gross violations of human rights are often committed, the Gambian courts often lack the clout to intervene. One of the highly publicized warnings of a public official for contempt of court, and the near dismissal of the case (Chongan, and others v. the Inspector General of police) was issued by the then Magistrate Borry Touray. Magistrate Touray was immediately fired from office; an action that further indicates the lack of the independence of the judiciary in the Gambia.
I totally agree that Justice Wowo's intervention in this case is courageous and unusual for Gambian courts; and I think Justice Wowo actually may have borrowed a page from Justice Richards. However, I withheld issuing full credit until this kind of court intervention is extended to all criminal as well as political detainees whose rights are being daily violated... |
Edited by - kayjatta on 04 Jan 2010 07:17:13 |
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toubab1020
12314 Posts |
Posted - 04 Jan 2010 : 11:33:52
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Thanks, Kay for your posting,wait and see what course of action the administration takes,interesting though I thought, but I suspect that you and I alone will post in this one, its a little too dry for most
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"Simple is good" & I strongly dislike politics. You cannot defend the indefensible.
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