By Rohey Jadama
Justice Eunice O. Dada of the Banjul High Court yesterday 21 June, 2016 decided to send the case file of six UDP women and others detained at Janjangbureh to the Chief Justice.
Justice Dada made this decision upon the application made by Mr Hadi Saleh Barkun, the Director of Public Prosecutions for the case to be transferred to Basse High Court. However, the trial judge said she wouldn’t be deciding on that
application.
When the case was called there were no accused persons in court. The DPP stood up and informed the court that the case is for mention but the accused persons are currently at Janjangbureh Prisons. He made an application for the matter to be transferred to Basse High Court for the sake of jurisdiction.
However, in her ruling, Justice Dada said the Chief Justice assigned
the case to her court but that in light of the DPP’s application for
the case to be transferred to Basse, she will refer the case file to
the Chief Justice for further directive.
It could be recalled that the six women namely Kaddy Samateh, a
lactating mother of a month old baby, Isatou Saidy, Lele Bojang, Sukai
Dahaba, Fatou Sarr and Amie Touray are standing trial at the Kanifing
Magistrates’ Court on seven counts of ’Conspiracy to commit felony’,
‘Unlawful assembly’, ‘Riot’, ‘Incitement of violence’, ‘Riotously
interfering with vehicles, ‘Holding procession without a permit’, and
‘Disobeying an order to disperse from an unlawful procession’.
The accused persons denied culpability of the charges brought against them.
However, when the case came up at the Kanifing Magistrates’ Court on 14 June 2016 State Counsel Sheriff Kumba Jobe applied for an adjournment based on
the fact that they have filed a bill of indictment at the high court but that they are yet to receive hearing notice. His application for an adjournment was granted.
The six women were not represented at yesterday’s proceedings.
