76.Again, except where a Member State steps outside its international
obligations, and to the extent that the said stepping out occasioned a violation
of the said international obligations, this court will not interfere in its internal
political processes. One thing, however, is clear on the reading of the
constitutive texts on the Court and the African Charter, that the member states
placed great faith in this Court to direct, through its human rights mandate,
the path that the human rights landscape of the Community must tread. It is
therefore incumbent on the Court, to constantly maintain the balance between
the freedom of government to act and the need to ensure that these actions
protect the guaranteed rights of the community citizens.
77.So where, in the course of regulating its internal process, the House, being a
principal organ of the Respondent violates the rights of a Community citizen,
this Court’s non-interventionist stance ceases and it will move to protect the
rights involved. The Court will intervene in favour of the victim to protect a
breach of a right guaranteed under the African Charter. So, contrary to the
submission of the Respondent that the impeachment of the Applicant was a
political trial which proscribes the Court’s intervention, when conducting its
internal proceedings, this Court cannot ignore any breaches of fundamental
human rights occasioned in the process in order to rule in favour of political
decisions. To do so would be inconsistent with both the mandate of the Court,
and the provisions of the African Charter and even the Respondent’s own
Constitution.
78.When considering the actions of the agents and organs of governments of
Member States, be it political or otherwise, it is imperative to point out that
member states have voluntarily subscribed to the obligations enshrined in the
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