By Mamadou Dem
Emmanuel O Fagbenle, chief justice of the Gambia on the 20th of January, 2017 tendered his resignation letter seizing the
said post and subsequently went back to his native country Nigeria.
Judicial Secretary, Landing Sanneh confirmed to this paper that indeed the chief- justice who was appointed in 2015 has decided to quit the job.
Prior to his appointment as chief-justice, Fagbenle as a high court judge presided over numerous criminal cases including the seven journalists’ trial in 2009 whom he convicted and sentenced to a jail term of two years. He also served at the bench of the appeal court.
During his tenure as chief-justice, he presided over an election petition filed by the then ruling APRC where he indicated that the said petition cannot be heard as the Supreme Court did not have a quorum and was therefore not properly constituted. He then urged parties to resolve the issue internally or else await judges that were said to be appointed in July 2016 to arrive in this jurisdiction in either May or November.
