ii. That the Protocol on Democracy and good governance was earlier in time than the 2005 Supplementary Protocol which granted access to the court to individuals without providing for the pre-condition of exhaustion of local remedies iii. That even if the Protocol on Democracy and good Governance came into force at the same time as the 2005 Supplementary Protocol , the Supplementary Protocol provisions will take precedence over the provisions of the protocol on democracy and good governance in that it was made specifically for the Court. iv. That Article 50 of the African charter, which mandates the African commission to admit cases only after the exhaustion of local remedies is inapplicable to this court being a directive meant only for the African Commission. In view of the above the defendant’s contention in this regard goes to no issue and cannot be sustained. 4. ON THE SUBSTANCE The following issues call for consideration 1) Can this court examine the impugned provisions of the laws of Gambia as urged by the Plaintiffs. 27