Africa-Press – Gambia. The Minister of Justice has withdrawn the Judicial Officers Remuneration Bill and replaced it with a new one called Judicial Officers Conditions of Service Bill which aims to create a legal framework to provide adequate and secure conditions of service” including “fair and protected remuneration” for judicial officers.
The withdrawn bill was first rejected by the National Assembly in September 2023 and its subsequent reintroduction faced opposition from many Gambians prompting a youth-led protest outside the National Assembly in Banjul with protesters calling on lawmakers to reject it.
The Speaker of the National Assembly said the mover of the 2024 bill seeks to remedy certain “mischiefs” in the document hence its withdrawal and replacement.
Government said new bill is introduced in fulfillment of a provision of the 1997 Constitution which guarantees the independence of the judiciary as a co-equal branch of government and vests the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) with the responsibility of overseeing matters related to the terms and conditions of service of judicial officers.
The bill makes provision for the salaries, allowances, pensions and other entitlements of judicial officers, and for connected matters.
The new bill will also empower the Judicial Service Commission to periodically review salaries and allowances payable to judicial officers and submit a report of its findings to the President for approval within three months from the date of commencement of the inquiry.
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