Recusal of Judges under Cameroon Criminal Procedure Code: An Appraisal

Abstract

One will always ask the question as to; what is the position of the law if the judge or ‘bench magistrate’ fails to directly apply the law and his conscience in the course of a proceeding under Cameroonian law. This question however, has been dealt with by applying the principle of recusal. Recusal of a judge simply means the act of challenging the competence of a judge during trial proceedings. This is usually done where it can be proven that the judge in question will either decide on the matter with interest which shall go a long way to show prove of friendship, bias or hatred against the accused during the trial. Bearing in mind that English law gives no power for a bench magistrate to have carnal knowledge or to handle a case for which they have interest in, it becomes pertinent for one to appreciate how such doctrine have been respected or given consideration under the Cameroon Criminal Procedure Code which actually harmonizes both the English Adversarial and the French Inquisitorial systems of laws.  It is therefore observe that the proper objective of this paper is to question whether the “Judge or the Bench Magistrate can be challenge during trial proceedings in Cameroon.” Such challenge will go a long way to educate victims of their right as to competence of a judge in a matter which will intend, serve as an appropriate measure to prevent denial and miscarriage of justice. The work therefore calls for an effective implementation and a proper look at the level of ambiguities which stands as barrier to recusal or challenge.