Justice Na Ceesay Sallah-Wadda, a presiding judge at the Banjul High Court, yesterday struck out the application for the review of the bail condition for Andrew Charles Northfield, the managing director of Carnegie Minerals Gambia Ltd.

Delivering her ruling on the application, the High Court judge, after relying heavily on the submissions and counter-submissions made by both the defence and the state counsel with regards to the review of the bail application, observed that none of the parties to the case argued as to whether the court has the jurisdiction to entertain the issue or not, noting that the case involved is a criminal one.

The judge quoted Section 19 of the 1997 Constitution, the Criminal Procedure Code, Criminal Code Cap 10 Volume III Laws of The Gambia to accentuate her position.

She added that there is no provision for a judge to review his or her decision. However, she told the court that it is open to the applicants to appeal against the decision in the Appeal Court for review, adding that her court lacks the jurisdiction to entertain the application.

Immediately after the ruling, Emmanuel Fagbenle, the director of Public Prosecution, applied for the commencement of the hearing of the trial. Although the defence counsel Mene did not object to the application, he requested that the witness documents be prepared and the DPP concurred.

At that juncture, the presiding judge adjourned the case to March 17 for the trial to commence in earnest.

It could be recalled that Mr Northfield was granted bail to the sum of D9 million (D5 million in a cash deposit and the balance equivalent to D4 million worth of two landed properties) by the same court on February 15.