Q & A

No development minus rule of law

Malawi Law Society (MLS) recently elected a new executive team. In this interview with our News Analyst  MERCY MALIKWA, newly elected president Khumbo Bonzoe Soko explains MLS’s position on threats to rule of law.

Having served the law society as honorary secretary for two consecutive terms, what new things will you bring to the society’s presidency?

Soko: The legal system must work for Malawians

It might not really be a question of pursuing new things for its own sake. I see this as a relay race where we build on the successes of our predecessors and learn from their shortfalls. The society has many success stories, but it remains an organisation with enormous potential. I hope to make a modest contribution in increasing its capacity so that it is able to deliver on its most important objectives of regulating the legal profession as well as protecting the public on matters of law. We also hope to take concrete steps towards the development of our own office complex. There is also a lot of apathy towards the activities of the society. Perhaps, members do not see any value that it adds to their professional life. We want this to change. We will work hard to improve the conditions within which they practice the law.

What is your vision for the country’s legal system?

The legal system in Malawi must work for the greatest number of our people. It must be efficient and accessible. And it must also be populated by competent, honest and progressive people. Some of us feel like our legal system is yet to fully adapt itself to the society that it is supposed to serve. Obviously, this will need to change.

The law society is supposed to protect and assist the public on all matters relating to the law. How do you intend to meet this expectation?

A

: We intend to continue to be objective and tireless advocates of the rule of law. A lot of the challenges facing out nation today are directly linked to the fact that the law is observed more in breach than anything else. People want to comply with the law only when it is convenient for them to do so. All of the disgraceful scandals that have rocked our nation in the last two decades have at their heart a dogged refusal by those involved to comply with both the letter as well as the spirit of the law. This has to change if we are to make progress as a nation.  There will simply be no meaningful development in the country if the rule of law remains weak and optional. 

How do you intended to confront this?

It is by insisting on a strict adherence to the rule of law that we will truly protect the people of Malawi on all matters relating to the law.  Of course, where we identify threats to the rule of law, we will not hesitate to take such remedial measures as are within our powers and competence.

Please share with us the immediate plans?

We want the society to be more proactive. This will see us going out to fellow citizens so as to bring the law to them. The levels of legal illiteracy in the country are rather alarming. Something has to be done about it. We also want to continue investing in the professional development of our members. Over the next 11 months, therefore, we will continue holding continuing professional development courses of our members. We also want to collaborate more with other professions so that together we contribute to making Malawi a better home.

Some lawyers continue to attract bad press due to their unethical conduct, especially duping clients. How do you intend to eliminate this long-standing threat to your esteemed profession?

This is quite an accurate assertion. And it’s sad. There is a serious reputational crisis that we have on our hands. We will need to deal with it decisively. Granted, there will always be lawyer bashers out there. It’s a favourite pastime for some. But we do great wrong when we abuse the trust of vulnerable people who come to us for help by overcharging them or simply by stealing from them or by rendering them an incompetent service. Let me dispel one belief that is out there that the MLS shields its own. Nothing could be further from the truth. And I actually believe that this popular belief stems from lack of appreciation of how the discipline of lawyers work in Malawi. Our role at the MLS Secretariat is to process complaints from members of the general public against lawyers. Once we do that, we send these matters to our Disciplinary Committee which is headed by the Solicitor General which sits to consider the complaints. If they find the lawyer at fault, they make a recommendation to the Attorney General for disciplinary measures against the lawyer concerned. The Attorney General must then apply to the Chief Justice who metes out punishment on the lawyer involved. As you can see, the process is needlessly long and inefficient. That is why the Law Commission when it reviewed the Legal Education and Legal Practitioners Act which regulates us, recommended that our disciplinary regime be revamped and that the powers of the disciplinary committee be enhanced so that it can deal with some of the issues of misconduct of lawyers after conducting its hearings without the involvement of the Attorney General and the Chief Justice. Sadly, for many years the Bill has been stuck at Cabinet level and is yet to make its way to Parliament. We urgently need to have this Bill passed into law so that we can deal with this issue decisively.

What legacy do you want to leave behind when your term is over?

Let me borrow from Wole Soyinka here. I don’t worry about those things. They are for historians and critics. It’s not really something that preoccupies my mind. But if I do right by the law, the legal profession and the public at large, then I will go away from this role a contented man.

Any parting shot?

One lawyer whom I greatly admire once said: “There is no such thing as governance by indifference.” We must all pitch in and do our fair share. We come to these roles willingly and for as long as we are here we will make whatever contribution that the exigencies of civic duty require us to make. But if our country is truly to be well governed, then let us perhaps suggest that the task is too huge to be left to any single profession or just a few lonely voices. Every Malawian must do his or her fair share of civic. We must all activate our citizenship.  

 

 

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