Court Dismisses Rt. Hon Zziwa’s Application Barring Legislators from Debating her Suspension.
The East African Court of Justice\r\nFirst Instance Division on December 16, 2014 delivered a ruling in an Ex-parte\r\nApplication (in the absence of the other party) arising from a matter between\r\nEALA Speaker, Rt. Hon. Margaret Zziwa – Applicant and Secretary General of the\r\nEast African Community – Respondent.
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The subject matter of the Application\r\nwas to seek among other things an order prohibiting and restraining EALA from\r\nconvening on the 17th December 2014 for purposes of suspending the Speaker as\r\nwell as from conducting any further investigations in this matter or tabling\r\nany report in the Assembly pending the hearing and determination of the main\r\ncase filed in the Court.
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The Court in its ruling deemed it\r\nappropriate that the Application be heard ex- parte at the first instance due\r\nto the urgency of the matter considering the Report of the aforementioned\r\nCommittee is scheduled for tabling and discussion on 17th December 2014, and\r\nthe Applicants fate as Speaker may well depend on the outcome of this\r\nparticular sitting of the Assembly.
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However, the Court found that the\r\nApplicant failed to prove the irreparable injustice that the process of the\r\nremoval may cause to her, as had been claimed in the application. It was also\r\nthe Court’s view that since the Applicant made representations to the Committee,\r\nto pre-judge the decision of this Committee and that of the Assembly would be\r\nunjust.
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The Court further noted that Article\r\n53(3) of the Treaty provides for the removal of the Speaker of the Assembly and\r\nso any holder of the office ought to know that possibility is always alive and\r\npursuing that course of action will not amount to irreparable injustice to the\r\nApplicant.
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The Court declared it was unable to\r\naccept the Applicant’s case that she is entitled to any ex-parte orders. The\r\nCourt thus ordered the Application be fixed for hearing inter parte on 3rd\r\nFebruary 2015. The Application was dismissed with no order as to cost.
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Ruling was delivered by a full bench\r\nof Judges of the First Instance Division.
Full Ruling
Source : East African Court of Justice.
Posted 17th, December 2014
