By Lincoln G. Peters
Liberia’s Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene G. Yuoh has sharply disagreed with President Joseph Nyumah Boakai that the Judicial branch of government is inefficient and corrupt.
During his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) delivered on Monday, 29 January 2024, Amb. Boakai lamented that Liberia’s justice system which is meant to protect the innocent and punish the guilty, has been marred by inefficiency, corruption, and lack of public trust.
“Mr. Vice President and President of the Senate, Mr. Speaker, and members of the Legislature, our justice system which is meant to protect the innocent and punish the guilty, has been marred by inefficiency, corruption, and lack of public trust,” said President Boakai.
“I am counting on this honorable Body to pass effective legislation and support financial appropriations that will help us win the fight against corruption,” he added.
He suggested that anyone caught in the act of corruption will face the full weight of the law, with swift and non-discriminatory enforcement.
However, Chief Justice Yuoh rejected President Boakai’s statement, insisting that the Judiciary has dispensed justice without fear or favor.
“I say that we as the Judiciary branch of the government, particularly the courts, and keepers of the law, take this statement as a challenge and decisively demonstrate that we are efficient, non-corruptible, and trustworthy in dispensing justice without fear or favor,” Chief Justice Yuoh argued Thursday, 1 February 2024.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]
Her response to Boakai’s comment about the judiciary came during a conference held by the National Association of Trial Judges of Liberia (NATJL) at the Supreme Court.
She called upon all judicial actors to take judicial notice of an aspect of the annual message of President Boakai, branding the judicial system as inefficient, corrupt, and lacking public trust.
On Thursday, 1 February 2024, the NATJL held its 10th National Conversation and Conference.
The conference was kicked off under the theme: “The Judiciary and Democracy in Liberia: Safeguarding Democratic Values in the Legal System, Especially During and After Elections.”
The indoor ceremony brought together members of the legal profession as well as stakeholders.
Chief Justice Yuoh attributed the lack of public trust in the judiciary to the practicing style of some lawyers.
However, she expressed disappointment in the forms and way some lawyers practice their lawyering.
According to her, their practice is intended to frustrate and delay the enforcement of courts’ judgment and hinder the administration of justice.
Justice Yuoh assured her unwavering stance on the strict administration of justice in the interest of peace, harmony, stability, and economic viability of Liberia.
She stated that the time for warning is over, and it’s now time to act.
“Therefore, the Supreme Court has constituted a review committee on the Revised Rules of Courts, the Code of Moral and Professional Ethics of Lawyers, and the Judicial Cannons, as well as our procedural codes, with the end purpose of identifying challenges and shortcomings,” she disclosed.
“I find no stronger words my conviction in ensuring the administration of justice than the words which I pronounced during the November 2022 convention of the Liberia National Bar Association… that the time for warning is over and it’s now time to act,” said Chief Justice Yuoh.
