Editorial: When Cameroon’s judiciary is convicted.

In evaluating the performance of the judiciary, Justice Mekobe Sone found it wanting, based on public criticisms and the spike in mob justice, which is often associated with the lack of confidence in the rule of law. 

“We are witnessing a rise of private justice and mob justice, where the law of Talion reigns: ‘an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth’, where "the jungle law reigns,” he said. 

Justice Mekobe Sone added that: “This is an unacceptable drift in the rule of law...the criticisms labelled against judicial institutions are not entirely unfounded”

He said: “Litigants do not believe in the objectivity of judges. They constantly question their impartiality and independence. They assume that they are subject to different forms of pressure,” Justice Mekobe Sone bemaoned.

He added that litigants accuse Examining Judges of not sufficiently measuring the impact of depriving citizens of their liberty. He cited Section 218 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Code, which provides that: Remand in custody is an exceptional measure, which shall not be ordered, except in the case of a felony or a misdemeanour. A self-bail or conditional bail is available for suspects accused of misdemeanour and simple offences as long as they provide sufficient security or guarantee. A person with a known place of abode shall not be remanded in custody, except in the case of a felony.

Have there not been cases, for instance, where tenants are locked up for not paying rents? Bail legally is free, but is it applicable, without the detainees paying through his nose?

Are Fako lawyers not on record for having gone on strike protesting that detainees were being forced to pay for bail without receipts before they were released?

In some court premises, notice is pasted indicating that bail is free, but will anybody who has been released on bail swear that it was free?

When people are being choked in life-threatening dungeons, they and their family members are willing to pay for bail to get their freedom.

It is on grounds of such criticisms that the Chief Justice indicted the Legal Department, for very easily depriving citizens of their liberty, even in civil matters. 

“Some seem to have been transformed into agents of debts recovery, he said, adding that: “We have to sadly note the role played by some judicial auxiliaries in the loss of confidence by citizens in judicial institutions”.

Court Registrars, he said, are the driving force within the courts, but unfortunately, some of them are often at the helm of judicial bottlenecks. He also mentioned the key role the judicial police plays in the functioning of the judicial machine. 

“If some judicial police officers are excellent in the practice of their jobs, there are also others who work in an unconscious manner and do not respect the fundamental rules governing temporary detention, interrogations, search, execution of warrants and court decisions,” he added.

He also underlined that: “Several obstacles in the smooth functioning of justice are often linked to the inertia of some lawyers, disrespect of their summons as well as the ethics of their profession”.

In emphasising on the role of justice, he quoted President Paul Biya in his address to the nation on December 31, 2023, as saying that: “As you rightly know, justice is one of the pillars of the rule of law. Therefore, it is essential to rule in total fairness and free from interference of any kind”.

From Justice Mekobe Sone’s candid, objective and just evaluation, the judiciary has not lived up to expectation, resulting in  "the loss of confidence by citizens in judicial institutions”.

“Our fellow citizens, economic operators, businesses, national and foreign investors are thirsty for justice,” he noted. 

To quench that thirst, he tasked judicial officers to “...strive to satisfy their expectations by restoring the fundamental principles that govern the legal profession".

It is almost an identical message the Supreme Court Chief Justice gave last year. Given the loopholes which the Chief Justice pointed out that annihilate the desire of the judiciary realm of state to live above board, very little has changed from the situation last year.

The Guardian Post recommends that the Minister of Justice, who is Vice Chair of the Higher Judiciary Council, should create a hot line through which suspects in minor crimes who are refused bail because they can't pay for it can complain as there are allegations that people are frequently locked up for flimsy complaints just to extort bail, which legally is free.

We are aware that the Higher Judiciary Council handles cases against corrupt judges, but not every citizen has the means to get his complaint to it. 

Allegations of detaining suspects, even for trumped-up reasons, are not uncommon. They sully the image of the judiciary and  encourage popular justice, which thrives only when the rule of law crumbles.