Statement of the Hon. Attorney General and SOS for Justice, Marie Saine-Firdaus At The Legal Year Celebrations Sunday 2nd December 2007-12-03

All protocols respectfully observed

We are gathered here once again to welcome the new legal year. It is a very important day for members of the bar and the bench and the general public as this is the time when we thank the Almighty for the legal year that has ended and also take stock of the successes registered, the problems and challenges during the last legal year and to also project what is expected for the new legal year.

Your Excellency, distinguished guests

To some people, the Attorney General’s Chamber and Department of State for Justice consist only of lawyers who go to court to prosecute criminals or defend the Government in Civil Suits.

To some, it is a training ground for new lawyers before they go into private practice where they can then open their own chambers and . make big monies. To others, it is just one of the Government offices where state counsel, like other civil servants, do whatever work is assigned to them for the benefit of the Government.

It is also not impossible that other people may have other notions of what the Attorney General’s Chamber does or its relevance to the people.

The purpose of this attempt is to provide a little extra information on the diverse services rendered in the Attorney General’s Chambers for the enlightenment of the general public, so that our individual and collective relationships can improve and so that we can contribute more effectively and efficiently to the socio economic development of our selves, our families, our business outfits and for the wellbeing of our nation in general, through a better understanding, appreciation and utilization of the services in demand and supply at the chamber.

The Attorney General’s Chamber is the Government Law Office and is there to serve public interest and the general public. It is the legal advice office for all public officers and civil servants alike in respect of their official functions and whatever affects them while performing those functions.

It also renders a lot of public service to individuals and corporate units in The Gambia. In addition, the chamber responds to requests from foreign countries, Governments, organisations, individuals and international agencies on issues of diverse concerns.

To carry out its responsibilities successfully, the Chamber have lawyers attached to different divisions and specialized units in the chamber for effective utilization of their skills training and resources, in order to render quality and organized service to the people of The Gambia.

It also works with our colleagues in private practice who are joint stake holders in the application of rules, regulations and laws of The Gambia. They advise and represent their clients on a variety of issues, and many times, they also represent the other side of the case in litigations before the courts.

As joint stakeholders, we owe a common duty to the nation to suggest and promote changes and advancements in the law, law reform and its application to the day to day life of the Gambia, for the peace, socio economic wellbeing and progress of our respective clients and the nation as a whole.

Your Excellency, Distinguished guests,

The Attorney General’s Chamber relies a lot on the Police, NDEA and other laws enforcement agencies that make arrests, investigate complaints and compile case files for advice or prosecution. They also help to locate accused persons, witnesses, and sureties and secure exhibits for prosecution in court. We encourage our young, talented and educated youths to join law enforcement agencies so that the strength of the police can be increased.

The prisons help to keep secure accused persons not entitled to bail until their case is finally determined. They bring accused persons in their custody to court on every adjourned date to attend their trials. 

However, some of their internal challenges like transportation, medication etc, sometimes overlap the intricate web of our joint relationship in the administration of justice.

Although, there is always the need to keep certain kinds of criminals behind the prison bars for the good of society, we however appeal to the penalising courts to offer more options of fine to first offenders to decongest the prisons where such options are legally available and logically feasible.

The courts in the Gambia are the final port of call in the justice delivery system, especially when disputes are about to get out of hand. The courts not only help to interpret the laws of the land, they help to resolve conflicts in relations between private persons, between government agencies or civil servants and individual members of the public. The courts are also officially involved in Arbitration matters, so they help litigants to settle their cases very amicably.

The Attorney General’s Chamber is represented in court to support, defend, contest or render such advisory opinion as would advance the course of Justice delivery where public interest, public property or civil servants are involved or whenever we are invited as a friend of the court. The appeal process is also part of the justice delivery system recognised by the Constitution of the Gambia and we appeal when we have reason to do.

Your Excellency, Distinguished guests,

In spite of our daunting challenges and constraints, we have over the years, in conjunction with our friends in other institutions involved in the justice delivery system of The Gambia, been able through successful prosecution of criminals worked to sustain a peaceful society where law and order is cherished and enjoyed. The Gambia continued to attract friends and investors from all corners of the world. We have been able to attend many of the Gambia’s international justice delivery arenas. We have succeeded in recording Gambia’s representation in many international bodies rendering quality service to the world community and at home and we are working hand in hand with the investing community for a more stable and friendly investing legal order. We cannot afford to rest on our oaths. We intend to do more and with all your support, we are convinced that we shall succeed and make The Gambia even better.

Our development partners have also been very instrumental in helping to improve service delivery at the Chambers and the overall justice delivery system. Under the World Bank CBEMP Project, the Chambers has benefited from institutional and material support and training. The project also supported the institutionalisation of Alternative Dispute. Resolution (ADR) in the Gambia and training of members of the private and public bar and the bench in ADR. I am happy to report that, thanks to this support the ADR Secretariat will be functional by January 2008.

 The Legal Capacity Building Programme (LCBP) supported by DFID, the UNDP National Governance Programme and UNICEF Country Programme have supported and continue to support the Chamber in its drive to ensure an effective and efficient execution of its mandate for the benefit of the Gambian people and we thank them for coming on board.

Your Excellency, Distinguished guests,

Despite the above successes, there is still room for improvement so as to carry out its function more efficiently and to the satisfaction of all concerned. The Attorney General Chambers need qualified and experienced legal practitioners trained in different fields and specialities reflecting the roles the Chamber is expected to carry out. Presently the Chamber does not have adequate manpower and support it needs to do its job. Of late, it has witnessed an unprecedented rate of attrition of both professional and support staff leaving some of the divisions with virtually one professional staff to execute the functions.

While tribute is paid to all those who have at one time or the other served or are still serving the Gambia in ‘the Attorney General’s Chamber and in the Courts, I wish to call on all our professional colleagues both at home and abroad to contribute their quota to their country by making themselves available to serve this country along the line of their chosen field or profession.

The Chamber also requires modern office facilities and constant retraining of both professional and support staff to keep pace with the local and international challenges of our times. We must publicly again and again acknowledge the understanding, support and encouragement of His Excellency Alhaji Dr. Yahya A. J. J. Jammeh to the Attorney General’s Chambers as an institution, and to the staff of the Chambers. His Excellency visited the chambers quite recently as part of his tour to government offices and promised us vehicles to facilitate the movement of counsel to courts and other areas of assignment, promised us a face lift to the office, as well as many scholarships to some staff. As his trademark, His Excellency has promptly delivered on his promises and we wish to thank him immensely. We appreciate the great contributions of the police and other law enforcement agencies in the arrest, investigation, prosecution, as witnesses in court and provision of other logistic support to the Chambers in the justice delivery system of The Gambia.

The limited number of Gambian Magistrates and Judges in the lower and higher bench has also affected the performance of the administration of justice in a timely and efficient manner. Constant changes of High Court Judges have affected the pace of litigation as many times, cases have to start from the beginning again and again whenever a judicial officer goes back to his home country after finishing his tour of duty.

I would therefore like to use this opportunity to publicly thank the newly appointed Magistrates and Judges of the High Court for accepting the challenges of that office. We wish you God’s guidance and wisdom to perform the functions of your office. I also wish to encourage you to stay on the job for the long term benefit of the nation. We expect a steady improvement in the speed and quality of proceedings as you stay on the job and rise up the ladder. 

I should not fail to acknowledge the importance of witnesses to the administration of justice. They provide the material evidence by which cases are either won or lost. Where they are not forthcoming, the cases are as good as lost.

We appeal to those who should come to testify to continue doing so punctually and consistently as their own sacrifice to the nation. It is only when cases are prosecuted that crimes will reduce, that law and order will improve, that those who are aggrieved will get justice and our future can be brighter.

When people are unwilling to report crimes, or testify in court, or they refuse to assist the police the investigation of cases, they indirectly render valuable service to the criminals and law breakers by helping them to escape the hands of the law. We urge you to join hands with us to make the Gambia a better place for all, a role model for Africa . and a positive example of a new world order.

Your Excellency, Distinguished Guests

For many years, the Gambia has survived in the legal sector especially; through the understanding and support of sister African countries who send us personnel support to the Bench and the Bar. We continue to be eternally gratefully for their support and continuing understanding. But since this is an African brotherhood gesture that cannot be overstretched or eternally taken for granted, the Gambia recently started its own law faculty programme. The first intakes are just about completing their first year and the second intake will soon be admitted.

It is important that all lovers of freedom and self reliance give their maximum support for the law programme now going on in the University of the Gambia. This opportunity provides ample chance for many students who cannot afford over seas training to study at home and realize their cherished dreams.

This facility also gives the Gambia the opportunity to train many lawyers to work in the Attorney General’s Chamber, in the Magistrates and High Courts and to be appointed in the several Government  Departments, parastatals and corporations as well as private commercial institutions and businesses, NGO’s or Law Firms now dotting the Gambia landscape. The market is wide and green for as many lawyers as the University can produce. The quality of service rendered by all offices, commercial outfits and individuals who have the benefit and constant legal advice will improve tremendously and our country will be the better for it.

In fact, it is also possible that Gambia will eventually be able to extend legal service and legal personnel support to other nations and international institutions in the near future.

I call on all well meaning Gambians and friends of the Gambia to invest in the law programme by providing scholarships, books, endowment of professorial chair, sponsorship of lectures’ salaries and providing other facilities that will help chairs ease the problem of the new law programme.

I wish to call on our senior citizens, statesmen and parents to encourage their children to study law, and also encourage their siblings to work in the Department of State for Justice as their own contribution to nation building. The advantage of the experience gain in the chambers will help them to serve their clients better in later life. The chamber is the best place to start contributing to the socio economic life and wellbeing of the Gambia since the service to be rendered in the Chamber touches on every facet of public and private life.

If we desire to build a happy and prosperous society where peace, justice, rule of law and social and economic progress is attained and enjoyed; we must all be a willing to do our part however small or however difficult it may be.
 
Your Excellency, Distinguished guests,
 
Allow me to state what the Attorney General’s Chambers wishes to realise this legal year for the development of our Justice delivery system.

1. Establishment and operation of the ADR Secretariat.

2. Revision of the Laws of the Gambia

3. Publication of Gambia Law Reports through the National Council for Law Reporting

4. Training of Gambian lawyers to serve the Bench and Bar

5. Improvement on the number of professional staff for the Bench and the Bar

We appeal to all those who have one service or the other to render, to please rise to the occasion whenever called upon to do so or the need arises. I also call on the Gambia Bar to continue to support the Judiciary and to work with my Chambers as we have always been doing in the past.

Rome, they say, was not built in a day; and little drops of water makes the mighty ocean. We are reassured that our combined positive little contributions over the years will surely guarantee us the Gambia of our dreams.

Before I conclude, I would like to pay tribute to Late Justice Wallace Grante, a retired member of the Gambia Court of Appeal and one of the few sons of the Gambia who have served his country tirelessly both at the Chambers and on the Bench. Justice Grante had made significant contributions to the development of Gambian law and we will always remember him for that. May his soul rest in perfect peace.

Finally, let me on behalf of all the lawyers in my Chambers renew our pledge to support the Judiciary in the administration of Justice and in upholding the rule of law. I also wish all the members of the legal fraternity a better and prosperous year ahead.

I thank you for your kind attention.