Says It Poses Health Hazard
PHOTO: One of the Magisterial courts mentioned around Liberia
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
TEMPLE OF JUSTICE, Monrovia- Just a brief tour of magisterial courts in southeastern and central Liberia has given them a picture of the deplorable condition of magisterial court around Liberia.
Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene G. Yuoh and Associate Justice Yusuf D. Kaba got just a glimpse of the problem and a further tour of other areas will give them a further understanding of the deplorable structures that magisterial Judges and other court officers and lawyers have to operate in daily.
In some parts in the southeast, mud structures are being used as courts to administer justice and one of such courts is the Killepo magisterial court in RiverGee County that is operating in the living room of the Magistrate’s unfinished home, with neither the old fashion typewriter nor modern computer.
If the Circuit Court was operating in an UNMIL container that was taken away by heavy storm with no record rooms, think about others parts of the county. The Circuit Court operated within that container for seven long years before it was relocated after heavy storm took the container away.
Due to the deplorable conditions of Circuit and Magisterial Courts across the country, it is difficult to have access to court records because there is no record room to keep court documents.
As Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene Yuoh said, the deplorable condition of the Magisterial Courts pose serious health hazards to the Magistrates, staff and party litigants, and they don’t represent the image of judiciary or the national government.
Killepo magisterial court operating in the Living room of the magistrate. Magistrate Cummings Pah
Speaking during the official opening of the March Term of Court, Justice Yuoh admitted that while assessing the Condition of Magisterial Courts and Evaluating the Performance of Magistrates and their Staff through taking a strategic toured in Montserrado, Grand Bassa, Bomi, Gbarpolu, and Grand Cape Mount Counties she observed the various courts are in a deplorable conditions.
The Liberian Chief Justice also mentioned that some of the Magisterial courts are housed in dilapidated, burnt or incomplete Structures or squatting on the patio of private homes to conduct business of the Courts.
“Given these harsh working conditions we must applaud and commend these Magistrates, and as National Government commit ourselves to alleviate such extreme hardship and embarrassment facing this coordinate branch of Government, the Judiciary,” Justice Yuoh noted.
Under her watch, she explained that there is a prepared proto-type or architectural plan for the construction of Modernized Magisterial Courts to replace the structures which were built under the UNMIL quick impact project. The large UN peacekeeping mission ended its mission in Liberia in 2018.
The Chief Justice noted that the UNMIL quick impact project was a program designed to give immediate but temporary relief to the Judiciary at the time the country was recovering from its civil crises, particularly our rural inhabitants.
She mentioned that after 18 consecutive years of peace and tranquility coupled with the Elections of Constitutional Governments, it is time now that these structures of the Magisterial Courts be improved and elevated beyond the quick impact stage to one that represents a National Government with a functioning judiciary in every respect.
“Our proposed of Modernized Magisterial courts will contain the following but not limited; one large court-room for the Stipendiary Magistrate, two smaller courts rooms for the associate Magistrates, one Stipendiary Magistrate Chambers with a bathroom, two Chambers for the two associate Magistrates, one Associate Magistrate bathroom, two general bathrooms, Clerk office, Filing clerk office and filing room, records rooms, public defenders’ office, City Solicitor ‘s Office, and two withholding cells with bathrooms,” Chief Justice Yuoh disclosed.
The Chief Justice has spoken of the need for stronger coordination between and among the three Branches of Government with regard to the establishment of Magisterial Courts and the appointment of Magistrates.
This, she said, will create efficient Magisterial services especially in rural Liberia.