GAMBIA: Lack of Judges Stalls Jammeh's Petition Hearing Against Barrow's Election
African News, Featured, Latest News, NewsTuesday, January 10th, 2017BALTIMORE, MD (AFRICAN EXAMINER) – Embattled President Yahya Jammeh's suit challenging the victory of his rival and winner of the last Presidential election, Adama Barrow has hit the brick wall, leaving little or no hope of hearing of his petition, ahead of the next week inauguration.
The Gambia's Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that it could not rule for several months on Jammeh's petition against his electoral defeat on 1 December owing to a lack of judges.
"We can only hear this matter when we have a full bench of the Supreme Court," the court Chief Justice, Emmanuel Fagbenle ruled
The Nigerian judge said the extra judges needed to hear the case were not available.
The Gambia relies on foreign judges, notably from Nigeria, to staff its courts due to a lack of trained professionals in the tiny West African State.
Jammeh's political party lodged a legal case on his behalf last month aimed at annulling the December 1 election result and calling for new elections.
Fagbenle added that he would prefer the country to resolve its political deadlock through the mediation underway by a group of West African leaders, who are still persuading Jammeh to respect the constitution and step aside.
"This is why alternative dispute resolution is important," he said.
"We are now only left with the ECOWAS mediation initiative and the inter-party committee set up by government to resolve the dispute," Justice Fagbenle restated..
The leaders from the ECOWAS regional grouping led by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will return to Gambia for the second time since the election tomorrow to attempt a diplomatic solution, but Nigeria's foreign minister has hinted that the use of force remains an option.
ECOWAS has given Jammeh up till 19 January to quit office so as to allow the swearing in of Barrow on January 20, as the new leader.
NAN
Yahya Jammeh should be forced to give up power in The Gambia - but not by force of military arms, because the echo of blood might be too long.I believe that:(1) he should be personally sanctioned by ECOWAS and AU: travel outside The Gambia restricted (under threat of being arrested) and any known assets confiscated.(2) any citizens of ECOWAS/AU seen to be cooperating with him, eg the Nigeria kangaroo judges he is appointing, should have their travel papers / passports suspended by their home nations, and be advised that they will be subject to prosecution when they return home.(3) civil disobedience within the Gambia should be encouraged, and the democracy movements within the country funded/encouraged.Things should not be hurried.Bolaji AlukoPS: The Gambia is generally a friendly and peaceful country. My aunt worked there as a pharmacist for two years, and my nephew worked there for about ten years as a medical research doctor, some of the time under YJ..On Mon, Jan 2, 2017 at 9:58 AM, Maurice Amutabi <amutabi@gmail.com> wrote:--I listened to the new year message from Yahya Abdul-Aziz Jemus Junkung Jammeh, the outgoing President of the Gambia and I was deeply shocked to see political buffoonery at the worst level. After Idi Amin of Uganda, we thought the era of tyrants in Africa was over. He claimed that the planned attack by ECOWAS to force him out amounted to declaration of war against the Gambia. Now Yahya Jammeh is the Gambia and Gambia is Yahya Jammeh! He must be forced out by ECOWAS and all democracies in Africa should send forces to teach this demagogue a lesson by forcing him out.Maurice Amutabi
After Jammeh has been removed, Africa should focus on removing Robert Mugabe, Paul Biya, Eduardo dos Santos, Yoweri Museveni, Paul Kagame, Pierre Nkurunziza and other dictators from power. The continent still needs revolutionaries. Yahya Jammeh should borrow a leaf from John Mahama of Ghana, and understand that in democracy you hand over power once you have been defeated at the polls.--Prof. Maurice N. Amutabi, PhD
Vice Chancellor,
Lukenya University
P.O Box 619 - 00204
Athi River, Kenya
E-mail: Amutabi@yahoo.com or amutabi@gmail.com
Tel: +254-(0)700-744545
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