By: Kebba AF Touray
The Attorney General and Minister of Justice is on the verge of tabling a draft Constitution Bill before Cabinet to replace the 1997 Constitution.
He told members of the Assembly on Wednesday that a draft will be tabled in cabinet; if approved it will be published in the Gazette and after that it will be tabled at the National Assembly.
“The constitution is expected to make its way to cabinet in the very near future, and we will gazette it when it comes back from cabinet hopefully, and once the gazette period is complete, it will be tabled.”
The Gambia’s Justice Minister Dawda Jallow, also told members of the National Assembly that Government has taken steps to address the issues of law reform and is working to constitute law reform committees.
Justice Jallow said this while responding to a question raised by the Member for Nianija during the question-and-answer session with parliamentarians.
The Member for Nianija, Hon. Amadou Camara, on behalf of the member for Upper Sloum, said common law and principle of equity and the decrees passed by the former AFPRC regime have been part of the laws of the Gambia as enshrined in the 1997 constitution.
He said the functions of the commission as provided for under Section 4 of the Law Reform Commission Act, 1983, includes but is not limited to studying and keeping under constant review, the statutes and other laws comprising the laws of the Gambia.
He then asked the Minister the following question: “Could the Minister of Justice inform this Assembly if the Ministry has any plans to change whereas the laws of the Gambia will only include laws that are made through an Act of Parliament and other subsidiary legislation among others, to essentially decolonize the country’s laws?”
In response to the question of the Member for Nianija, Justice Minister Jallow said his Ministry has taken steps to address the issues of law reform in the country, and they are working on constituting law reform commission which shall be responsible for promoting the reform of laws in the Gambia.
On repealing the decree passed by the former Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC), Justice Minister Jallow said Government’s White Paper on the report of the TRRC, accepted the recommendation of the TRRC to review and repeal the provisions of Section 7 (c) of 1997 constitution, on the decrees passed by the former AFPRC. He said the White Paper further highlighted that as part of the constitutional review process, Government will assess the desirability or not retaining Section 7 (c) of the 1997 constitution and has taken significant steps to re-introduce the bill before the Assembly. He said the Ministry has since collaborated with partners to negotiate with relevant stakeholders on the continuous provisions within the bill.
“We hope to bring back the constitution to this august assembly and put this matter to rest. Finally, the Gambia’s legal system is largely based on common law and there are generally two types of legal systems, namely the common law system or a civil law system,” he said.
In his question, the Member for Busumbala,
The Attorney General and Minister for Justice was asked by the Member for Bakau, Hon. Assan Touray, to state the rationale behind pardoning of 37 hardened convicts by the President.
In his response to the Member for Bakau, Justice Minister Jallow said Section 82 of the 1997 constitution gives the President power to pardon prisoners, regardless of the offence committed.
“Over the years, prisoners who committed capital offences including rape were not considered for pardon. However, in 2023 the prerogative of mercy committee considered pardoning prisoners by imposing guidelines and conditions upon which prisoners maybe pardoned,” he said.
This, the Minister said, includes pardoning prisoners who have no pending appeal, and have served a minimum of 10 years in prison, with good behavior during the period of their incarceration.
The committee, he said, also ensured that consent of victims or victims’ families were sought and obtained prior to the release of the prisoners. The committee comprises the Attorney General as Chairperson and heads of the Supreme Islamic and Christian Councils, the Minister said.
“As the legal adviser of the Government, is it advisable to pardon those convicted of the highest crime in the country?’’ asked Hon. Touray in a supplementary question.
“The people of the Gambia through the constitution gave the President unfettered powers to grant pardon irrespective of the crimes committed. That is what I know,” replied Justice Minister Jallow.
In another question, the Member for Busumbala, Hon. Muhammed Kanteh asked the following: “Did the committee contact the victims or their families before reaching to this decision?’’
In his response, Justice Minister Jallow replied in the positive, and said the Department of Social Welfare has been assigned and will report back to the committee, and said they have contacted the victims or their families prior to the release. He said where they believe that some of the offences are serious, they make sure that the victim’s families are consulted and the report is submitted to the committee before they advise the President.
The Member for Janjangbureh, Hon. Omar Jammeh, also asked the Justice Minister to state the members of the prerogative of mercy committee, and he responded as follows: “At the moment, it is the Attorney General as the Chairperson of the committee, and the presidents of Supreme Islamic and Christian Councils and the Department of Social Welfare.”
