State Counsel threatened for fighting corruption

The Senior State Counsel for Menchum division, in the North West Region, Magistrate Burnett Bekondo Enya Lombe, has come under scathing attacks and even threats for his unwavering effort to check corrupt practices, instill sanity, discipline and the rule of law in Menchum division.

The attacks and unfounded criticisms reached crescendo recently when the Member of Parliament for the Menchum North constituency, Honourable Ndong Larry Hills, wrote a petition to the Minister of Justice protesting that the State Counsel for Menchum, Magistrate Burnett Bekondo was blocking justice from the population.

In the petition, Honourable Ndong Larry Hills said that those working in the auxiliary services of the legal department like the gendarmes, police and others have been protesting that they are not “chopping” because the Senior State Counsel has made things difficult for them.

He went on to say these gendarmes no longer have “work “ while the number of cases that are heard by the courts in Wum have reduced, making the magistrates not to be too busy. Honourable Ndong Larry Hills in the petition prays the Minister of Justice to come to the rescue of his people who, according to him are being starved of justice.

As The Sun reached out to the North West Governor’s office where the petition was also deposited on Wednesday 21 January 2015, alongside the office of the Procureur General of the region, officials were lost on what exactly the problem in Wum was.

They pointed out that the petition did not mention any single instance where the State Counsel did not do his job as provided by the law. The officials wondered aloud how a member of parliament could put up a petition castigating a state official in blanket form without being able to mention a single instance where justice was trampled upon.

When The Sun contacted Magistrate Burnett Bekondo in his Wum office to comment on the developments, the fourth grade magistrate began by pointing out that as a civil servant, he was serving in Wum for the third time.

First, as a teacher in GTC Wum in 1986, then State Counsel between 2001 and 2006 when he moved to Ndop in the same capacity. In 2012, he was sent back to Wum as State Counsel for the High Court and Court of First Instance.

“As a public servant”, he stated, “One should be ready to serve the state anywhere and at anytime. As a magistrate, you are bound to do so with your conscience or without fear or favour. It is quite a challenging task especially at the legal department where there is investigation and enforcement of laws.

In doing so, you face opposition and hatred, consequently, threats and intimidation from quarters whose interests are touched. Nevertheless, if you are strict and unbending, you should be ready for all sorts of calumny against you and even manipulation. My alma mater taught me the values of truth, honesty, integrity and courage. These values, I don’t apply only in my person but also in my professional life”.

He said transparency, accountability and justice for all are his watchwords in the course of the exercise of his duties. “In that light, people may even fear you because they cannot penetrate you. In the face of these challenges, and for the interest of justice, you must stand firm and unwavering. The legal department with the support of all its auxiliaries in Menchum division in unison will continue to work notwithstanding the “shots” from detractors”.

He called on the population to fearlessly report all offences perpetrated against them by criminals to the legal department or forces of law and order for investigation and prosecution, advising that the population should not allow detractors, who, out of prejudice, envy, hatred, wickedness and even jealousy want to destroy what The Lord Almighty God omniscient has done for them.

Commuters in Wum town disclosed to The Sun that ever since arriving in Wum in 2012 for a second time as State Counsel, Magistrate Burnett Bekondo has successfully checked the excesses of law enforcement officials, who used to arbitrarily arrest and detain people and extort money from them. They noted that a few individuals who pass for rich people in the area had pocketed the population, making it difficult for them to complain or raise a finger against any of their unorthodox practices.

However, with the arrival of Magistrate Burnett Bekondo, many of these “rich people” have been trimmed to size, with some of them facing severe legal action and paying huge fines for their out of law activities. This, they commented has pushed them to wage a war against the State Counsel whom they see as a stumbling block to their activities.

The frustration, The Sun gathered reached new levels after amidst widespread rumours that the State Counsel would be transferred in the last movement of magistrates that was sanctioned by the Head of State on December 18, he was rather maintained.

Thus some of these local elite, it was revealed, have hoodwinked one of the two parliamentarians of the area, Honourable Ndong Larry Hills into writing a petition against the State Counsel because they believe the parliamentarian as a law maker can get him out of their way.