That has become almost like a custom. The reason why courts have refused to award costs in these public interest litigations is to encourage people to sue public organisations.
We must not protect public organisations from lawsuits. When you do that, people will not scrutinise the institutions and even when they have concerns, they will fear.
Public bodies can also use these costs to shield themselves from scrutiny of their activities. The costs go against what has now become cultural practice.
I wish someone would ask the courts to review these costs awarded to IEBC. It would be very wrong for people not to question how IEBC conducts elections based on fear that the poll agency can punish them with costs.
Even in this instance, IEBC is not a profit-making institution. They are fully paid by taxpayers' money. Why would they want to pursue people personally when it is not theirs to collect?
What is this loss that they have undergone? This is an issue for the public and they should listen to the public. If the public does not want the IEBC to recoup its costs by selling other people’s properties, it shouldn’t do that.
This money they are collecting goes to the Consolidated Fund Services. It is public money. It is not their money.
They should consider the public interest in whatever decision they make. It is the wrong way to proceed. There should be a bigger policy statement about this matter.
Parliament should come into this because it can make a decision that those costs will not be collected. The money being collected is going to the public purse.
It is in the greater interest of the public that people should always pursue IEBC in the way it conducts elections.
Senior Counsel spoke to the Star
