Newly-appointed judge ‘truly humbled’

Justice Dr Vergil Narokobi says he is ‘truly humbled’ by the confidence in him, which saw him get appointed as a Judge of the National and Supreme Court bench.

Initially serving as the Ombudsman Commission’s legal counsel, the newly-appointed Judge said: “I accept the appointment with a sense of awe, a sense of fear and a sense of joy at the same time.

“I say ‘fear’ because I will be placed in a position now to determine the rights and interests of my fellow citizens. And I must do that carefully, I must do that with a clear mind, I must do that with a clear conscience and I must do that without fear or favour, malice or ill-will.

“And that is something which is an onerous responsibility, a very big duty that’s conferred upon a judge.”

Justice Dr Narokobi was appointed by the Judicial & Legal Services Commission (JLSC), while the announcement was made by Deputy Prime Minister and chairman of JLSC, Davis Steven.

He now joins 40 other serving judges as the 41st judge to serve in the National and Supreme Courts of PNG.

He follows in the steps of his late father, Bernard Narokobi, who was a politician, lawyer and poet.

The late Narakobi was a founding member of the Melanesian Alliance party.

He served East Sepik in 1987, was Minister for Justice from 1988-92 and was credited with the establishment of the Law Reform Commission.

He died in March 2010, at the age of 72, after a short illness.

(Justice Dr Vergil Narokobi)

Author: 
Carmella Gware