Lord Justice Paul Ayah Abine’s lawyers have appealed to the President of the High Court of the Mfoundi Yaoundé Administrative Center through a motion known as habeas corpus calling for his immediate release. The lawyers stated in their correspondence that the state prosecutor has violated Title X which clearly indicates the Privilege of Jurisdiction in Article 629 (1) and (2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure:

“(1) Where a magistrate of the order is liable to be charged with an offense, the competent Attorney-General submits an application to the President of the Supreme Court appointing a magistrate to investigate the case and three , Of a rank at least equal to that of the third party, with a view to the possible judgment of the case in the first instance.

(2) The President of the Supreme Court shall further specify the city where the case is to be tried “.

Lord Justice Ayah’s arrest has undermined the reputation of Cameroon’s Justice Department as well as Cameroon’s criminal justice as it signaled a flagrant violation of the principles of the presumption of innocence.

By Sama Ernest