THE president of the Fiji Law Society has no right or jurisdiction to ask for Justice David Ashton-Lewis’s resignation.
This was the response from Justice Ashton-Lewis’s legal representative Hemendra Nagin to questions sent to Justice Ashton-Lewis regarding concerns about information he had divulged in a May 29 interview in Australia.
“On instructions of Mr Justice David Ashton-Lewis I write to advise you as follows:
“The president of the (Fiji) Law Society has no right or jurisdiction to ask for the judge’s resignation,” Mr Nagin said.
“The PM has already spoken on the issue and there is nothing further that the Judge can add on this.”
The following questions were also put forward by The Fiji Times to Justice Ashton-Lewis however no responses were forthcoming:
• Do you need the directive of the President of Fiji to divulge information relating to the findings of the report and was this sought prior to your interview with Radio 4CRB, or were you exempt from this requirement on the conclusion of your work as commissioner?
• What is your response to claims that you may have breached those terms of appointment by divulging information on the COI report findings in your interview with Radio 4CRB?
Mr Nagin concluded his response by saying Counsel Assisting in the Malimali Commission of Inquiry, Janet Mason, was the spokesperson for the COI.
