The Chief Justice of Sierra Leone Justice Desmond Babatunde Edwards has strongly warned Judiciary staff against corruption and its related offences that have the tendency to undermine the growth and integrity of the third arm of government. Justice Edwards gave this warning during the opening of the training for court registrars, bailiffs, administrative and other support staff of the Judiciary at the Main Court Building at Siaka Stevens Street in Freetown.
The ongoing training targeting 128 staff members is fully funded by the Judiciary with funds from the Government of Sierra Leone to add value to said staff to effectively deliver their mandate. The Chief Justice said the training is the first to be organised in the premises of the Judiciary. He told the trainees that the Judiciary and Legal Training Institute have identified seasoned facilitators with huge spans of knowledge on all the courses ranging from the roles of registrars in civil and criminal courts; roles of the bailiffs, court secretaries in both civil and criminal proceedings; treatment of vulnerable and special witnesses; bail and bond regulations; bail/bond requirements; management of records; Judiciary as an arm of government among others.
On corruption, Justice Edwards maintained that some staff are either too wicked or not good at their work, which is why they mostly renege on their sacred duties to allow files to go missing, allow accused persons to skip bail, or sometimes stall cases from coming up for hearing, all of which he said are unacceptable practices.
He promised to bring transparency and accountability to the people of Sierra Leone, and urged the trainees to give their best to the process, adding that those who are weak will also be capacitated to become resourceful and productive. He vowed to take drastic action against any staff found wanting for any dubious activity after the training, adding that there is no place for any corrupt official in the sector. “You either do what is expected of you or face disciplinary action,” he stressed.
The training is being spearheaded by the Director of Judiciary and the Legal Training Institute, Hon. Justice Eku Roberts with support from Justices Hon. Brown Marke JSC; Hon. Alusine Sesay JSC; Hon. Reginald Fynn JA; Hon. Monfred Sesay JA; Hon. Musu Damba JA; Hon. Bintu Alhadi JA; and Hon. Komba Kamanda JA.
It is expected to end on Saturday 14th November 2020.
By Mohamed J. Bah