Chief Justice Yuoh Believes It Will Make The Judicial System Dependable
PHOTO: The five Justices on the Supreme Court Bench
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
TEMPLE OF JUSTICE, Monrovia- Chief Justice Sie-A- Nyene Yuoh has called for the rebranding of the Judiciary to create a strong positive image and perception of the branch of government responsible to interpret the laws in Liberia, which she said has been discouraging.
The Supreme Court Chief Justice said this will evidently engender greater public trust and dependability in the judicial system.
This latest decision of the Supreme Court to rebrand the Judiciary comes after a trail of local and international human rights reports that the Judiciary is marred by corruption and imbalance in the dispensing of justice.
“Our brand marks will entail improvement in the quality of Judicial services provided in our courts across the country by elevating the quality of personnel at the Judiciary, whilst at the same time, working to improve the infrastructure that will provide a conducive work environment,” Chief Justice Yuoh noted.
According to her, it will also strengthen the system of monitoring and evaluation on job performance to ensure that professionalism becomes the hallmark at the Liberian Judiciary rather than business.
The highest court in the country has said it will embark on massive public awareness of the functions of the Liberian Judicial system by using the various communication methods and tools to ensure that the Liberian people and other nationals residing in this country are fully educated on the workings of the Judicial system.
“To monitor and evaluate the performance of our Magistrates and to enhance efficiency and restore order on our Magisterial courts, the bench has also evoked Section 7.5,“ the Liberian Chief Justice maintained.
Quoting Section 7.5 of the Judiciary Law as amended in 2013, Justice Yuoh said the states: “A Stipendiary magistrate shall hold office for a period of four years and shall be eligible for reappointment but he may be removed from office by the president prior to the expiration of his term of office for cause established by an investigation conducted by the Judiciary Inquiry Commission.”
She said that over the years reports on the performance of the Judiciary and in particular the Courts have been discouraging and the nature of said reports has not changed.
They will submit listing of all acting Stipendiary and Associate Magistrates whose commission are due for renewal.
The Supreme Court has promised to closely collaborate with the Judiciary Inquiry Commission and the office of the court Administrator to conduct a thorough performance review of all Magistrates serving for four years,
This will be done in order to determine whether or not the Magistrate is morally and professionally qualified to remain in the court, Chief Justice Yuoh said.