By Mohamed Foday Conteh
Former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara has started his defense at the Court of Appeal in Freetown.
The appellant was among those indicted by the Commissions of Inquiry (COI) to answer a case centered on incompetence and abuse of office during his tenure as Attorney-General and Minister of Justice. The matter at the COI centered on the issue between the state of Sierra Leone and Former Vice-President Samuel Sam-Sumana. It could be recalled that Sam-Sumana filed an appeal at the ECOWAS Court after he alleged that he had been unlawfully removed from office by then President Ernest Bai Koroma. Justice Biobele Georgewill at the COI had found out that Kamara was incompetent and grossly abused his office when he failed to advise the state to accede to the ECOWAS ruling.
It is against this backdrop that he filed an appeal citing that the findings and judgment were unfounded and that the COI acted beyond its purview.
The appellant arguing in person said he is before the court on an appeal dated the 16th December 2020 and is supported by an affidavit which was proposed on the 10 December 2020. He said that he relied on the grounds of appeal submitted to the court and the entirety of the affidavit that supported the notion.
The appellant with regards to Ground 1, relied on section 150 of the constitution and the synopsis. On Ground 2, he said that the sole Commissioner Georgewill had stated he abused his office. He made reference to page 5 of the synopsis, the document the appellant relied on for clarification, which he claimed indicated that there were lapses on the script because Georgewill had used the term indictment. He however said that the Commissioner went on to convict and impose a penalty. He argued that the commission should have only given recommendations and not convictions and other penalties. Kamara told the court that the commission was nothing less than an adjudicating body and that the judge was aware of the term ‘indictment’, given his experience of 30 years of legal practices. Kamara pointed out that the commission does not have the mandate to indict and even if it does, it should be able to kowtow to it with compelling evidences.
While criticizing Georgewill, he said in comparison that the other judges of the same inquiry would not have arrived at the same conclusion. He submitted that the legal opinion of the Attorney-General to the Executive and the international tribunal cannot be said to be negligent, unprofessional and an abuse of office without evidence.
Kamara stated that the major reason he did not accept the ruling of the ECOWAS Court was that the Supreme Court, the highest court in Sierra Leone, had already arrived at a judgment with authority etched in section 122 (2) of the constitution.
The appellant later hinged his argument that the constitution gives the Attorney General and Minister of Justice immunity from the COI.
Ady Macauley, a representative of the appellant, referred to Section 149(2) and (4) of the Sierra Leone constitution with regards to the impartiality of the commission which he claimed the judge did not make use of.
State Counsel, Robert Kowa said that there are issues with the appeal over the date of filing and argued that the said appeal was actually filed in October 2020 and not December 2020, to which appellant agreed citing that it was a mistake.
Kowa went on to implore the court to accept his argument taking a past judgment by Justice Timbo in the Sierra Leone Bar Association (SLBA) matter as a reference in which he said no immunity was granted to the Attorney General. He pointed out that the Minister of Justice is just like other ministers with privileges given but not immunity, saying there is a distinction between the two.
He argued that the government of Sierra Leone is not a political party but a government of the nation and affirmed an inquiry is an investigating body with various approaches among its tools.
He said that the principal adviser did not act as anyone in his position at the time would have acted with regards to the Sam Sumana, Ernest Koroma issue. He hinged this on the statement of a witness in the COI and emphasized that the decision made by the government to reject the decision of ECOWAS at that time, surmounts to damage of reputation.
Justice Ivan Sesay adjourned the matter to 16th June 2021.
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