Rights and advocacy groups for the establishment of the War and economic Crimes court, with purpose to end impunity and vindicate the rights of victims in Liberia, condemned the nomination of Cianeh Clinton-Johnson as Associate Justice of the Honorable Supreme Court, says her seating will undermine the objectives for the establishment of the soon be war and economic Crimes court for Liberia and calls on the president His Excellency Joseph Nyumah Boakai to consider withdrawing the said nomination as same is untimely and not in the best interest of the country at this time.
Representatives of various such group speaking to this paper over the weekend strongly argued that the nomination of Cianeh Clinton-Johnson, wife of the former Justice Minister Cllr. Lavala Koboi Johnson of the despotic rebel regime of the notorious warlord and regime perpetrator of war and economic crimes, Charles G. Taylor, as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court Bench, is not feasible at this time and will certainly strengthen the hands of would be indictees for War and economic Crimes.
They argued further that the now nominee is and can’t be the best suited for the highly prestigious and influential post of Associate Justice, in the face of the Immense soon be achieved fight against impunity by President Joseph Nyumah Boakai’s establishment of the war and economic crimes court for Liberia.
The rights and advocacy groups through their respective representatives insisted that Clinton-Johnson’s seating on the high court’s Bench would compromise the Justice System, strengthen the arms of war and economic crimes perpetrators under the Taylor regime and undermine the very aims and objectives for the establishment of the war and economic crimes court. These right activists and groups condemned the President’s nomination of Cianeh Clinton-Johnson and called on his Excellency to mlost respectfully withdraw such nomination of Cianeh Clinton-Johnson as same is not in the best interest of the nation and people.
More besides, they called on the president to note that gathering from their advocacy records of the violation of the rights of pretrial detainees with courts within and surrounding Montserrado County, judge Cianeh Clinton-Johnson is on record for denying rape suspects, 99% of whom are males, access to Justice, due to her failure to have ably proceeded with the trial and conclusion of their matters, as she sat as Resident circuit judge of the criminal court “E” for Montserrado County, thereby contributing highly to the now situation of prison overcrowded Ness at the Monrovia Central Prison and must not be elevated for these wrongs.
They attributed her violation of the rights of pretrial detainees to her inability to successfully tried cases, and insisted that she doesn’t legally knows much as is required to ascending on the Supreme Court’s Bench, they further insisted that from her records of proceedings from courts she had serve, judge Clinton-Johnson has absolutely nothing to offer on the Supreme Court’s Bench, as the Bench is already compounded with Case on appeal and needs an experienced legal practitioner, very versed in the laws, practice and procedure to filled the vacancy and instantly aid the court in the expeditious hearing of matters before the court on appeal and which the now nominee for the post cannot do.
Therefore, they called on His Excellency to immediately withdraw her nomination as maintaining same would mean reverting to business as usual, which this president assured us Liberian will not be the case under his watch as president of this Republic. They insist further that nomination to such high office must be on the merits of the nominee’s past performances, which is not the case with this nominee for Associate Justice and must need be withdrawn, they insisted that they trust the president’s resolved of commitment on deviating from the business as usual and that with these cogent information, the said nomination of Cianeh Clinton-Johnson will be withdrawn and the difference of ensuring that a competent lawyer, free of association and linkage with regime of warlords and economic vampires, is nominated to occupy such prestigious office on the Supreme Court Bench.
