Five criminal charges pertaining to drug offences and misbehaviour against former Chief Magistrate Pa Modou Njie have been dropped by the Bundung Magistrate Court, which is presided over by Magistrate I. Dibba. Due to the accused’s lack of rigorous prosecution, the court also formally dismissed them.
Public officer fraud and breach of trust, stealing by a public official, trafficking in illegal substances, abuse of office, and removal of property under valid seizure were among the charges against Pa Modou Njie. The court’s decision dismissed all charges.
Defence attorneys L.S. Camara and S. Sonko successfully submitted a motion to have the case dismissed on the grounds of prosecutorial delays. The case was launched by the Office of the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and prosecuted by Inspector B. Jarju.
Magistrate Dibba centred his ruling on whether the prosecution had done its best to pursue the case. He pointed out that the prosecution had requested five straight adjournments of the case, each time claiming that the case file was unavailable and that it had been sent to the Ministry of Justice for legal counsel.
Magistrate Dibba stressed that every accused person has the right to a fair trial, which includes a trial that takes place in a reasonable amount of time, as guaranteed by Section 24 of the 1997 Constitution. He emphasised that enough time had passed since the case was last active and decided that the ongoing delays constituted a breach of the accused’s constitutional rights.
The magistrate added that there was no evidence the state intended to pursue the prosecution, citing the legal maxim interest rei publicae ut sit finis litium, which states that it is in the public interest for litigation to terminate.
As a result, Pa Modou Njie was cleared of all accusations by Magistrate Dibba, who struck out the case.
