Africa-Press – Liberia. The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, Senator H. Varney G. Sherman, has disclosed that currently no qualified lawyer is functioning as Legal Counsel at the National Elections Commission (NEC), and that the Commission may be outsourcing that function.
The erudite lawyer and Senator of Grand Cape Mount County, briefing Senate plenary this week, intimated that his committee’s investigation has unearthed that the last person to function as legal counsel at NEC was Counselor Cephus Bliden, who retired in 2020.
Recently, the chairperson of the Senate Committee on Rules, Order and Administration, Senator Nyonblee Karnga-Lawrence, communicated to the Senate plenary that Mr. Alvin Teage Jalloh is Constitutionally not qualified to serve as Legal Counsel at the National Elections Commission, and therefore, should be removed.
Senator Lawrence in her communication reminded her colleagues that the position of Legal Officer of NEC is very key and consequential to the conduct of free, fair and transparent elections.
“Terms of reference of the Legal Officer entails providing legal advice or opinion to the Board of Commissioners, which is the ultimate decision making platform at NEC.”
Under the Elections law, Senator Sherman explained that the Commission can appoint legal counsels and research officers of the legal section, which shall be composed of two lawyers who shall serve as legal counsel to the Commission; one of who shall be appointed as senior legal counsel, who shall be head of the section. There shall be also two legal research officers.
Section 2.14 of the law ssys: “except a law officer who may be an attorney-at-law, anyone appointed as legal counsel must be a qualified lawyer and a counselor-at-law, and must have practiced for not less than five years prior to his or her appointment.”
Section 15.2 of the same law says: “Upon consultation with the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Liberia and the Minister of Justice, the Commission shall nominate and, with the consent of the President of Liberia, appoint legal counsel and research officers who shall serve at the pleasure of the Commission.”
According to Senator Sherman, the Commissioners confirmed that there are two attorneys at law in the legal section, but that no person has been employed as the legal counsel.
The Judiciary Committee, according to Chairman Sherman, is wondering what the two lawyers, attorney Alvin Teapge Jalloh and attorney Cephus T Weah, are doing at the Commission. “It would appear that either one or both are performing the position of senior legal officer, when the law is that that person must be a counselor-at-law; and in fact, that person should be appointed through a transparent process with the involvement of the Chief Justice and the Minister of Justice and the President of Liberia.
“The question is, why have they been keeping this job vacant? If you say Teage Jalloh is not performing as senior legal officer, and if we all agree that he is not a counselor-at- law, what are you doing with the money that is budgeted for that position?” Sherman asked. “But due to the absence of the chairperson of the Commission, Madam Davidetta Brown Lansana, those queries could not be answered by those members of the Commission who attended the Judiciary Committee meeting. But you can obviously see the complications show that they have not complied with the law.”
Section 2.16 regarding the functions and duty of the law says; “This legal section shall represent the Commission before the Supreme Court of Liberia in any election litigation or otherwise. And to the best of my knowledge, it has been Counselor Marcus Wilkins Wright who has been doing that, which means they are outsourcing the function of this position.”
The law, according to Senator Sherman, further states that it is this person who should be “advising the Commission on all legal matters when so required; submit to the Commission written legal opinions and questions of legal implications…”
It can be recalled that Counselor M. Wilkins Wright, not an employee of the NEC, had appeared before the Senate to represent the Commission, which means they are outsourcing the function of the legal counsel for NEC. “And while it may not be inappropriate to seek outside legal counsel,” Senator Sherman argued, “the fact of the matter is that this position ought to be filled, and should be filled, otherwise the implication is that somebody in the Commission — it’s highly probable that it is this attorney Teage Jalloh — who is performing the function of the legal counsel when he is not a counselor- at-law; there was no dispute that he is not counselor-at-law.”
Meanwhile, the Committee has requested sufficient time to complete its interactions with members of the Commission, including the chairperson who is said to be visiting some counties.
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