Court dismisses Ebrima Dibba’s appeal against sedition charge

The High Court in Banjul has dismissed an appeal filed by Ebrima Dibba challenging the validity of a sedition charge brought against him.

In a ruling delivered on June 3, Justice Sonia Akinbiyi considered whether the trial magistrate had jurisdiction to hear the sedition case in the absence of a written consent, commonly known as a fiat, personally signed by the Attorney General as required under Section 53(2) of the Criminal Code.

The defence had argued that prosecutions for sedition cannot proceed without the Attorney General’s direct written consent, maintaining that the charge initiated by the Solicitor-General was a nullity and violated the provisions of the Criminal Code.

However, the prosecution relied on Section 2 of the Law Officers Act, which empowers the Solicitor-General to perform the functions of the Attorney General either in his absence or under his authority and therefore the appeal  of the defence team lacked merit and was intended to delay the substantive proceedings.

In her ruling, Justice Akinbiyi held that Gambian law grants broad powers to the Solicitor-General to act on behalf of the Attorney General, and that statutory provisions allowed the Solicitor-General to perform the Attorney General’s functions, amounting to a standing authorisation, making a separate fiat unnecessary in every case.

The judge further stated that for proceedings to be declared a nullity, the defect complained of must be fundamental and affect the court’s jurisdiction. She found that no such defect existed in the present case.

Justice Akinbiyi concluded that the prosecution initiated by the Solicitor-General substantially complied with the requirements of the law and was effectively a prosecution by the Attorney General’s Office.

“Upon the foregoing findings, the appeal by the accused person lacks merit and is hereby dismissed,” the court ruled.