Bagbin’s call apt

Without doubt, the three arms of government play complementary roles in constitutional democracies.

Ours being a burgeoning democracy, it is important that our institutions, both in the public and the private sectors, co-operate and work in harmony to help accelerate the country’s development.

This will require that we respect not only our laws but also the functions and duties of our institutions, especially those tasked to serve as bulwarks for our democracy.

We can immediately refer to the Executive, the Legislature, the Judiciary, the law enforcement agencies, among others.

While Parliament represents the law-making arm, the Executive is responsible for the enforcement of laws, while the Judiciary is in charge of interpreting the Constitution and laws, as well as dispute resolution.

It is in this vein that the Daily Graphic welcomes the recent call by the Speaker of Parliament, Mr Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, for mutual respect between Parliament and the Judiciary in the discharge of their respective duties.

In a communication read on the floor of the House recently, Mr Bagbin said his attention had been drawn to attempts by some MPs to decline or evade service of court processes while Parliament was on recess.

He said it had also come to his notice that some members were arraigned and charged with various offences, without any notice to the Speaker.

These happenings are not only worrying but also an affront to our growing democracy and they must not be made to fester.

We agree with the Speaker that it had taken a long period of history, lessons and effort to achieve a cordial and harmonious relationship between the Judiciary and the Legislature, and that relationship must be safeguarded at all cost.

Furthermore, we do acknowledge the independence of the Judiciary from the Executive and the Legislature, while the Constitution calls for a system of checks and balances.

Nonetheless, the Speaker’s advice to parliamentarians to accord members of the Judiciary and the Judicial Service the outmost respect, decency and decorum they deserve is in the right direction and must be given serious consideration.

Relatedly, the constitutional provision which states that MPs should not be served with court processes while Parliament is in session has, in some instances, been disregarded by some court officials.

“In a letter dated February 19, 2021 and addressed to the Chief Justice and Head of the Judicial Service, I indicated my strongest reservations with the attempt by officers of the Judicial Service to serve court processes on some Members of Parliament, the Clerk to Parliament and the Speaker of Parliament while these office holders were attending to the proceedings of Parliament at the precincts of Parliament when Parliament was in session,” the Speaker pointed out.

We note with satisfaction the fact that, according to the Speaker, the Chief Justice had, in a letter dated February 22, 2021, respectfully acknowledged those breaches of the Constitution by officers of the Judicial Service.

The inter-relationship between those two important pillars of the country’s democracy cannot be taken for granted.

We at the Daily Graphic believe that Parliament and the Judiciary play critical independent roles in our democratic dispensation, hence the need for the two to co-operate and work together.

We further believe that the issues, as raised by Mr Bagbin, are genuine and apt.

In the not-too-distant past, we had instances when drama had unfolded when bailiffs attempted serving MPs with court processes. Some of those instances also involved bailiffs who tried to serve MPs in Parliament.

Fortunately, the Speaker has set the rules and guidelines as to when MPs could be served with court processes.

We expect that MPs will comply with the directives and, as the Speaker said, accord members of the Judiciary and the Judicial Service the outmost respect, decency and decorum.

In a similar vein, we expect the Judiciary too to do the needful by following due processes in serving MPs with any court summons.

Sometimes, the enthusiasm with which some of the bailiffs work leaves much to be desired. At least, notifying the Speaker can even facilitate the MP being served and responding to the summons on time.

We have come far in our current dispensation and we believe everything needed to protect it must be done. Parliament needs the judiciary, and vice versa.

We do recall that the Speaker, at the presentation of this year’s budget statement before Parliament, made a case for not only Parliament but the Judiciary as well. This is the way to go.

Article 117 of the 1992 Constitution provides that “civil or criminal process coming from any court or place out of Parliament shall not be served on or executed in relation to the Speaker or member or the Clerk to Parliament while he is on his way to, attending or returning from any proceedings of Parliament”.

We believe our Speaker has spoken in good faith and we must all play to the rules of engagement.