"A Good Man Would Prefer to Be Defeated Than to Defeat Injustice By Evil
Means"
The Independent (Banjul)
OPINION
September 10, 2001
Posted to the web September 10, 2001
D. a Jawo
Banjul, the Gambia
The recent confirmation on Citizen FM by the chairman of the Independent
Electoral Commission (IEC) Gabriel Roberts that the commission is indeed
consulting with the Attorney General's Chambers for legal advice as to
whether certain people are eligible to contest the forthcoming presidential
elections was not only a surprise but a great disappointment to most people.
As an institution that claims to be independent and free from control by the
executive or any other governmental and non-governmental body, it really
runs contrary to all the grains of natural justice and fair play for them to
be seen openly seeking legal advice from the Attorney General's Chambers,
which is part and parcel of the executive. Everyone had expected the IEC to
have their own legal adviser who would give them independent and impartial
legal advice on all issues rather than depend on the A.G. Chambers for
anything. It would be quite interesting to see how the IEC could be able to
justify to Gambians any decisions they may eventually take basing them on
any advice they may receive from the A. G. Chambers, particularly when the
Attorney General and Secretary of State for Justice Joseph Joof, who is the
ultimate head of that department has categorically challenged the
eligibility of certain opposition politicians to contest the elections,
citing certain constitutional provisions to back his position.
It is therefore inconceivable that any member of staff of the A. G. Chambers
who wants to keep his/her job would give the IEC any advice that would
contradict the position held by Joseph Joof, as that would tantamount to
tendering his/her resignation. Therefore, if Mr. Joof insists that the
Coalition presidential candidate Ousainou Darboe, for instance, is not
eligible to be nominated as a presidential candidate, then I cannot see how
anyone at the A. G. Chambers would give a contradictory advice to the IEC
and keep his/her job. That is the reality.
This kind of posture by the IEC is bound to give some credence to the
prevalent rumours that there is a conspiracy to postpone the elections in
order to give the regime more time to enable them implement some of their
projects upcountry. I can therefore foresee a scenario when the IEC would
take advice from the A. G. Chambers not to accept Mr. Darboe's nomination
papers, which is very likely to be challenged by the Coalition and the
matter would end up in court. There would eventually be an injunction to
postpone the elections until the matter is resolved.
The other possible scenario is that in order to avoid a possible dangerous
reaction by supporters of the Coalition, the IEC would go ahead and accept
Mr. Darboe's nomination, which would then be challenged by the APRC,
resulting in a protracted legal battle, thus giving the regime still more
time to implement their projects, with the hope of earning a few more votes.
Apart from the possible constitutional crisis such scenarios may provoke,
there are also the possible dangerous consequences of rejecting the
nomination papers of anyone of the potential presidential candidates. It is
therefore very important that the IEC reconsider their decision to seek
legal advice from the A. G. Chambers, as it has the tendency to cause
trouble during the run-up to the elections. Indeed Mr. Roberts and his team
tend to overlook the fact that the independence of the IEC is being put to
the litmus test, and by openly coming out to tell the people that they
depend on the advice of the A. G. Chambers to take certain legal decisions
that may affect some members of the opposition, it is not likely to augur
well for the Commission's reputation. They however need to be reminded that
the elections are very crucial to this country's very reputation and if they
are not properly handled, some dire consequences of unpredictable
repercussions may follow. Therefore, Mr. Roberts and his team should know
that their every step is being closely monitored and they cannot afford to
make any mistake because that could be very costly, which this country
cannot afford. They should however understand that seeking legal advice from
the A. G. Chambers sends a negative message to supporters of the opposition
that the IEC is being manipulated by the APRC through the executive. The
only way they can therefore manifest their independence and impartiality is
for them to get their own legal adviser who would give them impartial legal
advice rather than depend on the A. G. Chambers for anything.
These elections are also the only opportunity that Mr. Roberts has to
exonerate himself from the allegations leveled against him in 1996 that he
helped President Jammeh to win the elections. This time round, all eyes are
being focused on the IEC and on him in particular, and any little mistake
would be too costly to contemplate.
The insistence by Joseph Joof to bar some members of the opposition from
contesting the elections on a legal matter is yet another indication that
even though the regime succumbed to both local and international pressure to
repeal Decree 89 which banned some first republic politicians from
participating in politics, they are still bent on employing other means to
bar those politicians who pose a threat to their re-election from contesting
the elections. It is quite ridiculous for Mr. Joof to go on looking for
provisions in the constitution that he could use to bar some people from
contesting the elections. It certainly does not make any sense to the
layperson for him to say that by being paid legal retainer fee by the Social
Security and Housing Finance Corporation that made Ousainou Darboe a public
servant. It appears that this is all part of the political gimmicks being
employed by the regime to get the elections postponed.
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