The Movement for Social Justice, (MSJ) is lending support to the Law Association’s call for Chief Justice Ivor Archie and members of the Judicial and Legal Services Commission (JLSC) to step down.
Yesterday, MSJ leader David Abdulah said the CJ and the body he heads, which legal luminaries say has brought the profession into odium over the treatment of the appointment and subsequent resignation of former chief magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar to the bench, must step down.
“In our view, the time has come for CJ Archie and members of the JLSC to resign in order to ensure that the credibility and legitimacy of the judiciary and our legal process can retain some of its very significantly tarnished reputation. We are calling for them to resign,” Abdulah told a media conference at the party’s St Joseph Village, San Fernando headquarters yesterday.
“Quite clearly, this is another indication of the collapse of our institutions of state.”
As the situation worsens with accused people whose matters were part- heard by Ayers-Caesar now standing in limbo, calls have been made for Government to intervene.
Last week, Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard raised concerns over the legality of restarting some of these 53 part-heard matters.
There was also another near riot of some of the affected prisoners in the Port of Spain Magistrates’ Court when acting Chief Magistrate Maria Busby -Earle Caddle told them their matters would have to be restarted.
In spite of the vote of no confidence in the CJ and some members of the JLSC, both Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi said the separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary does not permit Government’s involvement at this time.