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The ECOWAS Court of Justice, has ruled in favor of Mr. Kessei Menveinoyou, a Togolese citizen, finding that the Togolese Republic violated his right to a fair and timely appeal under Article 7(1) of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. The Applicant, Mr. Kessei Menveinoyou, a driver residing in Lomé, submitted an employment dispute with the Togolese Ministry of Health to a Labour Court in Lomé in 2015.
After an initial judgment by the Labour Court in favour of the Ministry, he filed an appeal in 2016. However, according to Mr. Menveinoyou, the Registrar of the Labour Court in Lomé neglected to transmit his appeal to the appropriate appellate court for hearing, resulting in an unreasonable delay of about eight years. He contended that this inaction contravened his fundamental right to have his appeal heard within a reasonable time.
The Togolese Republic objected to the ECOWAS Court’s jurisdiction, arguing that the matter fell within Togo’s domestic legal framework. However, the Court dismissed this objection, clarifying that it has jurisdiction over cases alleging violations of international human rights instruments binding on ECOWAS member states. In the Judgment delivered by Justice Edward Amoako Asante, the Judge Rapporteur, the Court held that as a party to the African Charter, Togo has a legal obligation to uphold the right to fair trial for all its citizens. Therefore, the failure of the Togolese judicial authorities to transmit the Applicant’s appeal to the relevant appellate court violated his right to a fair trial within a reasonable time. The Court ordered the Togolese Republic to pay Mr. Menveinoyou Five Million CFA Francs (5,000,000 CFA) in damages.
It also directed the Respondent State to take the necessary legal or administrative steps to expedite the processing and hearing of the Applicant’s appeal before the appropriate national court.
The three-member panel of the Court were Honourable Justice Ricardo Cláudio Monteiro Gonçalves (presiding judge), Honorable Justice Gberi-Bè Ouattara (panel member), and Honorable Justice Edward Amoako Asante (judge rapporteur).
Michael Olugbode
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