There has to be fairness, impartiality: Bidar

ONE cannot be a judge, jury and executioner at once, says Waigani Committal Court magistrate Cosmas Bidar.
“There has to be fairness and impartiality when prosecuting a case,” Bidar said.
He made the comments after Adam Ninkama, the lawyer representing Chuave MP Wera Mori, filed an application to have police prosecutor Senior Inspector Stanley Poga replaced because he had a conflict of interest in the matter.
Ninkama said the court should disqualify Poga because he was the police officer who investigated the matter and “unlawfully executed a defective search warrant”.  But Poga told the court it was up to his superiors and the Government whether he should continue to represent them.
Bidar will make a ruling on the application on October 13.
Mori, charged with official corruption, was alleged to have misappropriated about K40,000 of the Chuave district funds around July, last year.
The court heard that a warrant of arrest was issued in early December last year for the apprehension of Mori.
A motion to set aside the warrant of arrest was filed by Mori’s lawyer on December 11 last year.