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Highly respected lawyer Rowland Wright has called on the Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Segepoh Solomon Thomas, to seek a Supreme Court opinion regarding the tribunal set up by President Bio to investigate suspended Auditor General Lara Taylor-Pearce and her Deputy, Tamba Momoh, for alleged professional misconduct.
In his letter, Wright expressed concern over the tribunal’s constitutional legitimacy. He noted that after the suspension of Lara Taylor-Pearce, the President established the tribunal on November 17, 2021. Wright had previously raised issues about the tribunal’s establishment, composition, and terms of reference, which he argued were ultra vires the constitution. Despite his efforts, including filing an urgent application to the Supreme Court on December 20, 2021, these issues have not been addressed, leaving the tribunal’s constitutional validity in question.
Wright highlighted that despite his application being of “utmost urgency,” the Chief Justice of Sierra Leone, Justice Babatunde Edwards, did not assign it to a Supreme Court panel. This omission denied the Supreme Court the chance to rule on these significant constitutional questions. Wright filed another application on March 16, 2022, seeking to halt the tribunal’s proceedings until the Supreme Court resolved these issues. However, this application also remains unaddressed.
The tribunal continued its investigation without Supreme Court adjudication, and despite assurances, Wright and his client have yet to receive a copy of the tribunal’s report, which was presented to President Bio on June 12, 2024. Wright stressed that without the report, they cannot make any further legal applications.
Wright urged the Speaker to consider the constitutional implications and seek a Supreme Court opinion before Parliament votes on the tribunal’s report. He warned that proceeding without resolving these issues could set a dangerous constitutional precedent.
He concluded with a call for procedural correctness, quoting, “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you,” and emphasized the need for justice to run on “serviceable and properly inflated tyres” in Sierra Leone.
