Not satisfied with the Complainant’s arguments, the Commission found for the
Respondent State and declared the Communication inadmissible.
6.
The Complainant states that the present request for review is based on the
Commission’s subsequent decision in Communication 266/2003 - Kevin Ngwang
Gumne & Other v Cameroon1 (Gumne Communication), specifically para 211,
wherein the Commission established the following facts in relation to the
independence of judiciary in the Respondent State;
“The Commission states that the doctrine of separation of powers requires the
three pillars of the state to exercise powers independently. The executive branch
must be seen to be separate from the judiciary, and parliament. Likewise in order
to guarantee its independence, the judiciary must be seen to be independent from
the executive and parliament. The admission by the Respondent State that the
President of the Republic and the Minister responsible for Justice are the
Chairperson and Vice Chairperson of the Higher Judicial Council respectively is
manifest proof that the judiciary is not independent.”
7.
The Complainant submits that subsequent to Communication 260/2002 which is
the subject of this request, the jurisprudence of the Commission has been updated
to agree with Complainant’s submissions that, in so far as the Respondent State is
concerned, there is no independent judiciary that could arbitrate impartially on a
matter in which the Respondent State is cited as Respondent. Accordingly, there
were no judicial domestic remedies available for the Complainant to exhaust.
8.
On the basis of its conviction that there were no effective judicial remedies that
could have been exhausted, the Complainant respectfully invites the Commission,
to correct this ‘inadvertent oversight and to declare the Communication
admissible for progression to the Merits stage’.
9.
The Complainant avers that gallant steps were taken for amicable settlement of the
dispute, which yielded no positive reaction from the Respondent State.
1
Communication 266/2003 -Kevin Ngwang Gumne & Others v Cameroon (2009) ACHPR
2