10 Every individual shall have the right to have his cause heard. This comprises (a) The right to an appeal to competent national organs against acts violating his fundamental rights as recognized and guaranteed by conventions, laws, regulations and customs in force, (b) The right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty by a competent Court or Tribunal, (c) The right to defense including the right to be defended by counsel of his choice (d) The right to be tried within a reasonable time by an impartial Court or Tribunal. The Court is of the view that the provision relied on by the Applicant is relevant for bringing this action against the Defendant. Article 1 of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights provides that “The Member States of the of the Organisation of African Unity (now African Union) shall recognize the rights, duties and freedoms enshrined in this Charter and shall undertake to adopt legislative or other measures to give effect to them. Article 4 reinforces this obligation imposed on State parties to the Charter by providing that Human beings are inviolable. Every human being shall be entitled to respect for his life, and integrity of his person. No one may be arbitranly deprived of this right. The Court holds that the Republic of Sierra Leone, being a party to the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights is obliged to preserve and protect the Applicant’s right to fair hearing as provided for under Article 7 of the Charter. Historically, referred to as the rule of natural justice, the rule of fair hearing consists of two basic components, namely,