Judiciary complaints body in the offing

Ministry of Justice says it has proposed introduction of an independent complaints commission (ICC) to handle grievances against judicial officers and protect judges when they are put up for removal over alleged misconduct.

The proposals are contained in the Judicial Service and Administration Bill which seeks to promote transparency and accountability as well as enhance judicial independence.

The proposal is being pushed alongside the Constitutional (Amendment) Bill. 

Initially, the power that the ICC will play was placed in the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), but Solicitor General and Secretary for Justice Allison M’bang’ombe said the two Bills were returned by Cabinet for further consultations; hence, the ongoing process.

In an interview yesterday, he said the public was being misled that the ministry is delaying the Bills and that the Bills are meant to penalise judges.

Said M’bang’ombe: “The Bill is not about removal or disciplining of judges, it’s talking about so many things like accountability, transparency, complaints procedures like how people can complain about judicial officers.

He said Cabinet noted after initiating the Bills that proper consultation was not done, as such it approached the Malawi Law Society (MLS) which formed a task force and came up with their own proposals.

However, M’bang’ombe said that the Judiciary stated that it had only seen the last Bill which went to Cabinet, and therefore needed to appreciate the new changes, including the ICC.

He said: “On March 1, the Judiciary presented its position paper, discussed and we also presented some issues that were not in the Judiciary position paper. For example, we are suggesting that we should come up with the ICC like what is in the police.

Former Director of Public Prosecutions Kamudoni Nyasulu welcomed the suggestion for an independent Judiciary ICC, but said its effectiveness will depend on its composition.

He said: “Even the JSC was compromised because of membership, so, even if you have something independent, if the membership remains the same, it will not make a difference.”

MLS honorary secretary Gabriel Chembezi said they have not yet been appraised on the proposal for ICC.

MLS and other stakeholders have been pushing for the tabling of the two Bills set to facilitate reforms in the Judiciary.