Monrovia, Liberia — The Judiciary, through the Supreme Court of Liberia, has threatened to use judicial power against the Executive and Legislative branches of government for failure to adhere to the budget of Liberia.
By Willie N. Tokpah, [email protected]
In its Friday, July 19, March Term Sitting, Chief Justice Sie-Nyene Yuoh, in a statement noted that the Judiciary is a constraint to take action to compel the two branches of government to comply with Article 2 of the Constitution of Liberia (1986) in addressing issues relating to appropriately addressing its budgetary allotment.
“We hope that this situation be addressed immediately by the President of Liberia, as head of government, and the leadership of the Legislature to avoid a constitutional crisis as this branch will not accept such treatment of indifference and imposition from co-equals of government,” Chief Justice Yuoh stressed.
She said her contention was against the Legislature and Executive unresponsive behavior to concerns raised by the Judiciary, regarding 2.8% of the National Budget to the Judiciary, which is the second largest branch of government, while other branches are enjoying a significant portion.
This, the Judiciary views, unfair and unjust, noting it is an attempt by the other two branches to, rendering its function ineffective and inefficient.
Justice Yuoh said the Judicial is more concerned about said action because this situation about an “imposition of 17 Million” on them was raised and a meeting was held with President Joseph Boakai on the matter with a promise to address the situation since the present budgetary appropriation provides no opportunity to restore the salaries of judges.
Furthermore, she added that the lack of adequate financial support continues to impede the effective function of the judiciary over the years, for which an appropriate budgetary allotment is needed.
“We reiterate that the lack of adequate financial support to the Judiciary by the government over the years has resulted in deteriorating infrastructure, as many courts, including the Temple of Justice building, are in deplorable conditions, lack of logistics, and worsening conditions of service at the Judiciary and this is substantially impairing the duty of the Judicial Branch as mandated by the provision of Chapter VII of the Liberia Constitution (1986).
Justice Yuoh expressed disappointment and disapproval over the treatment of the Judiciary branch by the Executive and Legislative branches, regarding the 2024 budget appropriation, threatening that the Judiciary would be left with no alternative but to use its constitutional power to strike down any law that contradicts the Constitution or existing statutes, including the budget law.
Chief Justice Yuoh said, “We are cognizant of our power of judicial review and the constitutional power to strike down any law which runs contrary to the constitution or other existing statutes, such as the budget law.”
Upon the passage of the 2024 fiscal budget, the full bench of the Supreme Court brought the issue to President Boakai’s attention.
A meeting among the three branches of government was convened on Sunday, June 23, 2024, to address the budgetary concerns of the Judiciary.
Legal Framework and Financial Autonomy
The Supreme Court’s position is based on Section 21.3 of the New Judiciary Law (amended 2006), titled The Financial Autonomy Act.
This section mandates that the Judiciary’s budget estimates be included in the National Budget without revision, except for recommendations by the Bureau of the Budget.
This aligns with Article 72(a) of the Constitution of Liberia, which ensures the remuneration of Justices and Judges.
At the beginning of the budget process, the Supreme Court submitted a budget estimate of $31 million to the Ministry of Finance and Development Planning (MFDP). However, without legal authority or consultation with the Supreme Court, then-Finance Minister Boimah S. Kamara submitted a different budget estimate of $17 million for the Judiciary to the legislature.
Upon passage of the 2024 national fiscal budget, a contingent amount of $3 million was appropriated, termed as a “one-off/non-recurrent” appropriation for Judges’ benefits.
Chief Justice Yuoh expressed disappointment that a second communication was sent to President Boakai on July 5, 2024, expressing the Judiciary’s utmost dissatisfaction regarding their budget.
The Judiciary has been unable to procure operational materials or facilitate judges’ travel due to inadequate budgetary appropriation.
Chapter VII of the Liberian Constitution (1986) and the New Judiciary Law mandate the Judiciary to effectively manage the Supreme Court and all its administrative units, including 22 Circuit Courts, 75 Specialized Courts, and 160 Magisterial Courts across the country.
Chief Justice Yuoh stated, “It appears to us that both the Legislative and Executive branches do not regard the Judiciary as a co-equal branch of government, given their unresponsiveness to our concerns about the meager 2.8% of the national budget allotted to the Judiciary.”
The Supreme Court emphasized the need for the government to uphold the rule of law and respect the financial autonomy and operational needs of the Judiciary to ensure justice and effective governance in Liberia.