Fair, Efficient Judiciary ‘Cornerstone Of Democratic Society’
An impartial, fair and efficient judiciary is the cornerstone of a democratic society. This was the comment by Acting Chief Justice Kamal Kumar during the three-day 2019 Civil Law Workshop held at Shangri-La’s Fijian Resort and Spa at Yanuca Island 11km from Sigatoka.
Acting CJ Kumar told judicial officers that decisions made in court
should not be affected by bias or prejudice on the grounds of sex, religion, ethnicity, culture, business, personal or financial interests. “One thing we must always take heed of is that an impartial, fair and efficient judiciary is cornerstone of a democratic society. It is, in fact, a fundamental requirement,” he said. “In my message to the graduates from USP who were admitted as legal practitioners, I called on them to perform their duties with integrity and dignity. The same goes for us judicial officers because it is our duty to act impartially, fairly and do justice between the parties.” Acting CJ Kumar called on judicial officers to enhance public confidence in the judiciary, ensure that their conduct was beyond reproach and ensure that their judicial colleagues observe the same standards.
“You will agree that the independence of the judiciary is paramount. The hallmark of an independent judiciary is the need to be impartial and need to handle cases without fear, favour, affection or ill-will,” he said. “We must not allow our decision to be affected by bias or prejudice on the ground of sex, religion, ethnicity, culture, business, personal of financial interest.”