Liberia: Bar Association President Calls on Chief Justice to Recuse Himself from Justice Ja’neh’s Impeachment

MONROVIA – The president of the Liberia National Bar Association (LNBA) has asked the Chief Justice to recuse himself from the impeachment hearing of Associate Justice Kabineh Ja’neh. Speaking with Judicial reporters at the Temple of Justice, Cllr. Gongloe expressed concern over the Chief Justice’s neutrality in the case.

Report by Kennedy L. Yangian [email protected]

He opined that the counts on which the impeachment proceeding was initiating against the Supreme Court justice by the lawmakers was wrong and should not have been condoned by the Chief Justice.
“If one says that someone is held for misconduct, there should be a clear judgment from a due process as the law requires that a Judge cannot be held accountable for judgment/opinion,” said Cllr. Gongloe who stated until the lawmakers can do the right thing their action will continue to be condemned.

He said he will not sit silently and watch the law being violated.

Cllr. Gongloe said that in the case at bar, the lawmakers disrespected the high court when they refused to honor the stay order placed on the impeachment proceeding by Associate Justice Sie-Nyene Youh but instead wrote the High Court a ‘humiliating letter’ in which they disobeyed the High Court.

He expressed regrets that the Chief Justice went ahead to hear the case despite the disregard.

“I call on the Chief Justice Korkpor not to go there and preside as history will judge him badly if he goes there because that entire process is a product of a constitutional violations,” he said.

Cllr. Gongloe said the lawmakers are not worth voting for again as they have continued to show blatant disregard to the law and disrespect to the Supreme Court.
“Those lawmakers have chosen to disrespect the Court because they are lawmakers. I believe the Speaker could not do what he did if he was not a Speaker of the House of Representatives,” he said.