Monrovia – Lawyers representing the Liberian Senate have submitted to the Supreme Court a ‘respondent return’ against a petition filed by four of their colleagues to the Supreme Court. They Senate members prayed that nation’s highest court to issue a stay order on the Senate’s proceedings on the impeachment of Supreme Court’s Justice Kabineh Ja’neh.
Report by Henry Karmo [email protected]
The Senate’s legal team headed by former River Gee County Senator, and former Justice Minister Fredrick Cherue and Senator Varney Sherman, Chair on the Senate’s Judiciary Committee, beseeched the Supreme Court to deny and dismiss their four colleagues’ request.
The four senators include Conmany B. Wesseh, Daniel Naathen, Milton Teahjay and Oscar Cooper. These senators asked the Supreme Court to be mindful of the authority and power to impeach a public official, specifically the President, the Vice President, the Chief Justice, Associate Justices of the Supreme Court and judges of the lower courts whose removal from office can only be done through impeachment, as provided in Article 43.
The impeachment proceeding begins exclusively with the House of Representatives, while the authority to try and effect the impeachment lie exclusively with the Senate.
The petitioners contended that when it comes to the impeachment procedure, Article 43 of the Constitution provides, “The Legislature shall prescribe the procedure for impeachment proceedings which will be in conformity with the requirements of due process of law.”
Senate Response
In response to the argument made by the four, the Senate said, Article 42 of the Liberian Constitution, clearly provides in part that all official acts done or performed and all statements made in the chambers of the Legislature shall be privileged, and no legislator shall be held accountable or punish therefor.
In the four senators’ petition to the court, they named Senators Saah Joseph, Johnathan Kaipay, J. Gbleh-Bo Brown, H. Dan Morias, Varney Sherman, A. Marshall Dennis, G. Alphonso Gaye, Prince Johnson, Thomas Grupe, Henry Yallah, Henrique Tokpah, and George Tengbeh. Others were Morris Saytumah, Sando Johnson, Albert Chie, Peter Coleman, Jim Tornonlah, Dallas A.V Gueh, and Matthew Jaye.
According to the two Senate lawyers — Sherman and Cherue — naming them as individuals in the petition and, requiring them in the language of the citation issued by petitioners’ petition should not be granted, is tantamount to holding them personally and individually accountable and is effectively a violation of the privilege guaranteed by Article 42.
“For this reason alone, respondents pray that the entire petition should be summarily denied ad dismissed with cost against the petitioners.
“The respondents pray your Honors to take judiciary notice that legislative privilege is universally recognized. In recognition of this universal principle, when ‘in Re proceeding’ is pursued before this honorable court to determine the constitutionality of a law or any action of the Legislature, no legislator is named to be personally liable.”
In count 30 of the respondents’ return, they described as flimsy and devoid of any legal claims by petitioners that were the House of Representatives to concur with the amendment of rule 63, it would be unconstitutional; which makes count 11 of the petition incomprehensible and therefore subject to dismissal in its entirety.
“Wherefore and in view of the foregoing, respondents pray your Honors to deny and dismiss this petition and declare the Amendment of Rule 63 of the Senate’s Standing rule constitutional and to grant unto respondents any other and further relief as in such matters are made and provided by law.”