Abusing the judicial system

Aug 21, 2012 Editorial

In recent times there seems to be an abuse of the judicial system, to the point that cases deserving of a hearing have to be shelved to deal with matters ranging from constitutional challenges to frivolous matters stemming from someone’s desire to silence an accuser.
At the start of every criminal session the Director of Public Prosecutions would release a jail delivery. Almost all of them tell the same tale; cases are not being heard and have to be redirected to the next session. The media have been pointing to the fact that of more than one hundred cases listed for the criminal session, no more than five are completed.
The civil cases are even worse. Some are not heard after more than twenty years. Sometimes they end up as dead files because one or more of the litigants die. Not so long ago, the Inter-American Development Bank made a sizeable grant available to the justice system to clear up the backlog. The judges were paid for every old case they disposed of.
But for all that, more cases are added to the system and faster than the courts could dispose of those before it. At one time, and this is still the plea, the judiciary is inviting people to go to mediation. Some have opted for this course of action because of the delay in getting a speedy hearing.
Guyanese have always rushed to the courts for redress for every simple matter. If a neighbour encroaches on a piece of property, invariably the matter ends up in court. Family disputes abound and they will continue to flood the system.
Such cases are understandable. What is now mind-boggling are the frivolous cases that are ending up in court. The past fortnight saw no less than three such cases. Someone becomes offended at a comment and he sues for either libel or slander.
There was the case of the Government spokesman moving to the courts to silence the media from reporting on an episode in which he was involved. He sought an injunction, but lawyers for the defendants moved swiftly to have the injunction removed.
The media had hard evidence that the voice on the recording belonged to the Government spokesman and foreign Governments were also inclined to that view. But the spokesman, perhaps in an effort to divert attention, moved to the courts.
Former President Bharrat Jagdeo sued because he claimed that he was impugned. The matter got a speedy hearing, but the litigant refused to testify on his own behalf. That matter is still engaging the attention of the courts.
The long-serving Chairman of the Ethnic Relations Commission also moved to the courts because a columnist dared to write something that the ERC Chairman found to be in contempt of court. That matter, too, got speedy disposal in the courts and was found to be wanting.
We now have a spate of litigation in the wake of publications that highlight some questionable things in the operations of the government and its dealings with sections of the private sector. The media have long uncovered acts of corruption and have provided proof to justify the publications. However, the targets, perhaps enriched with large sums of money, are using this money to silence the media.
It costs a lot to defend a legal action, no matter how frivolous. In Guyana, there is hardly a penalty against one bringing a frivolous lawsuit.
Kaieteur News has not been without its share of legal action against it. The newspaper has defended and will continue to defend all of them vigorously.
We now notice that added pressure is being applied to the newspaper. Because it also publishes a newspaper in North America, some of the litigants are going to the North American courts. They believe that given the distance between Guyana and North America and the cost of trial – legal representation in North America is expensive – then they would be able to secure a lopsided decision through an absence of defence.
This will not be the case. But should the same thing happen to another private newspaper, one can well imagine the impact on the very survival of that newspaper.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News