By Fatou Sillah
Madi Jobarteh, a prominent human rights advocate, has voiced strong objections regarding presidential immunity as outlined in the new draft constitution.
Speaking in a Twitter space, Jobarteh argued that presidents should not be granted immunity, or if they are, it should be significantly limited compared to what is proposed.
“I don’t really think presidents need to have immunity; even if that has to be, it cannot be as we have in our constitution, whether the 1997 constitution or in the current draft. There have to be limitations because I think presidents as public servants have to take responsibility for their decisions and actions, and so there are decisions and actions that they may take for which they should be held accountable.
“But that is a matter for us as legally minded people, as political scientists, as people in this kind of area to really reflect deeply, what kind of society do we create such that we do not attempt to elevate somebody to a level simply because the person is a president?” He said.
Jobarteh further questioned the powers granted to the president, emphasizing the need for accountability in a democracy.
“Powers that are given to the president, which for me, I questioned, in terms of what really constitutes a democracy, what really constitutes a republic? Already, we know that in the same constitution, even within that immunity, there are impeachment grounds, that the president can be impeached, but that is by the parliament, and impeachment is very rare and very far to come because it is also very political. We have seen in other republics like the United States where impeachment proceedings have taken place recently, and they couldn’t conclude as expected simply because it is also very political,” he said.
He also expressed a desire for the president, his cabinet, and technocrats to have a different perspective on the draft constitution.
“This is all the more reason, I would have wished the president had a different perspective, and his advisers, that is, the cabinet and technocrats, would appreciate where we are, and our history and experience but also take time to reflect on the broader issues, really thinking of the future as well.
“We are a democratic republic, and we have had a constitution before 1997, and now we want to create one. One would have thought if they had demonstrated leadership and responsibility, they would sit down and say what kind of Gambia do we really want to create, but I think that has not been done, and not just at that level but even among us as citizens and civil society,” he said.
Jobarteh concluded by calling for a reevaluation of governance narratives.
“I think the time has come for us to really begin to interrogate and challenge the prevailing narratives and perspectives on governance, about politics, about the state and constitution. What kind of state do we want to create? Now, relating to this particular issue, I think it is monarchical, which may be something inherited because of colonialism and so on. We can see in other republics around the world that it is monarchical to try to create certain kinds of royalty around the president, like immunity, prerogatives of mercy and so on,” he said.