Senate Tables Impeachment Process

By Jackson C. Clay, Jr.

The plenary of the Liberian Senate has tabled the impeachment proceedings of Associate Justice Kabineh Ja’neh if they are recalled by the Executive or when they return from their annual break.

The Liberian Senate reached the decision Thursday, September 13, 2018 in its regular extra two weeks session following a report submitted by its expanded committee on Judiciary, Human Rights, Claims and Petitions.

The report which was read in plenary of the Liberian Senate is consist of two parts, the propose amendment to Rule 63 of the Senate’s own Standing rules to make its compatible with the constitution and to clarify the procedure for impeachment of any public official and proposed timeline for the conduct of the impeachment trial of Associate Justice Kabineh Ja’neh.

Upon the reading of the report, a motion was made by Bong County Senator Henry Yellah that its rule be suspended for the purpose of the impeachment trial but said motion was amended by Maryland County Senator Gbleh-Bo Brown that the matter be tabled upon their return or that the matter be looked into within less than a week should they be recalled by the Executive.

“Colleagues, we wish to caution all of us that we conduct the impeachment trial of Justice Ja’neh in a manner that brings honor to both Houses of the Legislature, not in a manner that exposes the Liberian Senate of the 52nd Legislature to ridicule and public disrepute for the errors they may have committed in various provisions of the Rule 63 when they adopted the Senate standing Rules during the 2nd Day Sitting of the 4th session of the Senate, March 30, 2009,” the committee reports advised

The committee report further stressed that the impeachment process should in no way expose the House of Representatives due to individual perceptions that they may have erred in the manner and form in which that body conducted its process.

The Liberian Senate and the House of Representatives by extension the Legislature is expected to take its annual break as require by the constitution of Liberia.

According to Article 32 (b) of the Liberian constitution “The President shall, on his own initiative or upon receipt of a certificate signed by at least one-fourth of the total membership of each House, and by proclamation, extend a regular session of the Legislature beyond the date for adjournment or call a special extraordinary session of that body to discuss or act upon matters of national emergency and concern.”

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