Dust at Supreme Court

There were particles of dust in the  air at the Temple of Justice on Wednesday when President Ellen  Johnson Sirleaf and House Speaker Alex Tyler arrived at the Supreme Court on the heels of arguments into the ongoing Senatorial  disputes hearing.

Tongues waggled in insinuating comments that could be heard loudly from aggrieved politicians descending the stairs of the nation’s highest court as President Sirleaf and House Speaker Tyler  stormed the building.

Their present left one of the lawyers asking the purpose of their visit at the court. The New Dawn was barred from entering the premises of the Supreme Court at about 7PM local time by court security guards and Police officers who said that Mrs. Sirleaf and Mr. Tyler were meeting Chief Justice Francis Korkpor on an issue different from  the ongoing senatorial disputes, and journalists were not allowed.

For several hours, Liberia’s President Sirleaf and Speaker Tyler were locked up in meeting with several justices of the Supreme Court Bench, including Chief Justice Francis S. Korkpor, Sr., briefly after Chamber Justice Phillip A. Z. Banks suspended hearing into an election-related complaint.

After her arrival at the Temple of Justice just about a few minutes to 6pm Wednesday, President Sirleaf’s convoy and House Speaker Tyler’s van did not leave the Judiciary up 7:20pm until Judicial Securities began warning a few reporters to leave.

Justice Banks, who recently issued an injunction against the certification of three senators-elect of Grand Cape Mount, Bomi and Margibi Counties, was hearing another batch of prohibitions against other senators –elect based on complaints coming from defeated Maryland County senatorial candidate Bhofal Chambers and several others.

The court had said it was not hearing complaints of electoral irregularities, but whether or not the National Elections Commission could have gone ahead to certificate winning candidates, while protests against them were still pending at the NEC. 

Justice Banks- presiding over all of the injunction hearings was briefly whispered to by a court officer, while lawyers were on the floor, following which it took a few minutes of arguments when matters were suspended.

Down stairs were President Sirleaf and House Speaker Tyler, who since arriving nearly about 5pm, did not leave up to 7:20pm.

There ‘s no hint as to what the President and Speaker had made such emergency visit to the Temple of Justice. They were reported to have met in the office of one of the Justices.

A bit of drama ensued as Representative Chambers, who is challenging election results against Blebo Brown, got irritated at the President’s visit yesterday.

By Winston W. Parley & Ben P. Wesee