JUDICIARY Latest Features

(L-R) Front: Hon. Justice Kazibwe (Resident Judge - Kabale), Hon. Justice Buteera (Deputy Chief Justice) , Mr. Bigiirimana (Permanent Secretary/Secretary to the Judiciary) with other staff at the Kabale High Court

The quest to reduce backlog in the Judiciary has taken the Deputy Chief Justice and also Chairperson of the Case Backlog Committee, Hon. Justice Richard Buteera, to Mbarara, Kabale and Masaka High Court circuits.
 
The DCJ kicked off his backlog monitoring drive in Kabale on Monday October 4, 2021, where he was received by the Resident Judge, Hon. Justice Moses Kazibwe Kawumi, Ag. Deputy Registrar, HW Julius Borore and other Judicial Officers in the circuit.
 
This is the second visit the DCJ is making in less than a year to assess progress in the reduction of case backlog.
 
The DCJ was first taken on a guided tour of the court premises. He inspected the newly built canteen and appreciated the Permanent Secretary to the Judiciary, Mr Pius Bigirimana, for availing the funds for the construction. He also commended the Court for having well-arranged archives but urged them to get acid boxes for better storage.
 
Additionally, Hon. Justice Buteera thanked the Systems Administrator for running an updated CCAS system where information can easily be retrieved. He further commended the staff who are all able to update the digital record which has enabled the physical files to correspond with the CCAS record.

In his report to the DCJ, the Kabale Resident Judge reported that out of the 1,013 cases pending hearing, 562 are backlog. Of these, criminal cases account for the bulk at 374. He further reported that 309cases had been completed between December 2020 and September 30, 2021. "Since your last visit, we have completed 309 cases and of these, 161 were in the backlog category."

Hon. Justice Kazibwe went on to outline challenges of the circuit such as inadequate staffing, lack of alternative energy sources, impact of Covid-19 and delayed release of session funds.

Usage of Alternative Dispute Resolution mechanisms, weeding out and plea bargain sessions are some of the case backlog reduction strategies the Circuit will deploy, the Judge said. He however asked for two visiting Judges to hold a total of four sessions in two quarters to help clear the criminal backlog.
 
Concerns raised
A number of concerns were raised during the open discussion which the PS/SJ responded to using Zoom Technology. The issues raised were; the need for an alternative power source, legal reference materials, infrastructure for the second courtroom, acid boxes for the archives and regularization of staff on contract employment.

Responses
The PS/SJ revealed to the meeting participants that with the increasing Judiciary budget, these aspects will be handled. "We are running a budget based on approved work plans and the generator is part of these, so this will be addressed." Adding that the legal reference materials aswell as acid boxes can be catered for. He then tasked the Court's Registrar toput in writing the costed requirements so that they can be attended to.
 
Regarding recruitments, the PS/SJ shared thatrecruitment of Judicial Officers based on the approved structure was set tokick off. He equally informed them that the Judiciary willstarting this month, be using the revised duty-facilitating allowance ratesapproved in 2018.
 
He urged the participants to account for funds received to enable them get more funds.  The issue of staff on contract was being addressed, Mr Bigirimana reassured  them as he called for patience.
 
The DCJ used the occasion to disclose that the construction of regional Court of Appeal courthouses will soon kick off in Mbarara and Gulu. He commended the teams for their efforts, as he called upon Judicial Officers to improve their work ethic to reflect the enhanced salaries and to create ageing lists for the backlogged cases.  
The Judicial Officers appealed for training for all staff in modern court practices.

The DCJ was accompanied by the Judiciary Technical Advisor, Mr Andrew Khaukha and his Private Legal Secretary, HW Dr Alex Mushabe Karocho. A similar exercise was conducted in Mbarara.