DPP Haji wants all charged public servants suspended from office

Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji wants public servants charged in court suspended from office.

Mr Haji, appearing in a local TV show on Tuesday, said the Judiciary should set tough bail conditions for individuals facing serious offences.

He argued that State officers often used the offices they held to subvert investigation against them, thereby tampering with witnesses or evidence.

The DPP said he intended to propose amendments to Parliament to address the issue.

“We have seen PSs, ambassadors... step aside after being charged. Their allowances have been chopped off and they are getting half their salary. I will ask Parliament to review the law so that such individuals lose their salaries altogether,” he said.

He said bail terms set out to defeat the purpose of the whole exercise due to lack of applicable standards across the board.

Chapter Six

The DPP said courts needed to evoke Chapter Six of the Constitution that required such individuals to step aside until their matters were heard and determined.

“When we have individuals who have been charged and who happen to be ambassadors in foreign countries asking for bail so they can present their credentials in a foreign country, what message are we sending? The courts need to help us,” he said.

He expressed displeasure over the manner in which courts had been handling cases against high-profile individuals.

Several high profile individuals, including governors and senior officers in Government, have cases in court, some touching on graft, abuse of office and murder.

Haji said while the presumption of “innocent until proven guilty” was in the law, the same law allowed for public officers to step down when charged with offences until they are cleared of any wrongdoing.