L-R: Dr. Pius Bigirimana (Permanent Secretary/Secretary to the Judiciary) and HW Sarah Langa Sui(Chief Registrar) speaking to the Ag. Chief Magistrates at the Judiciary Headquarters
The Chief Registrar,HW Sarah Langa Siu, on Friday July 15, 2022 held a mentorship session with thenewly appointed acting Chief Magistrates at the Judiciary headquarters inKampala.
The meeting wasorganized to orient the CMs on how to come up with good teams that will ensurethere is effective and efficient administration of justice as stated in theAdministration of the Judiciary Act (AJA). The meeting also enabled members tonetwork and bond, while learning and receiving guidance from both peers andseniors that have served as CMs before them.
The Chief Registrarsaid the position of a Chief Magistrate is very critical and it comes with somuch power but also critical responsibilities and obligations.
She further advisedthem on how best to execute their duties while representing the institution. "Be good managers of your stations, you are now leaders, go out there to serve.servanthood and stewardship is what's required from you. It is only you who canbe the change that you want to see. As your commander in chief, I am dependingon you to go and transform your courts and deliver justice to the public," shenoted.
She urged the JudicialOfficers to work hard in order to defend their titles with good deeds. This,she said, will be of help in their confirmation after 12 months in case theymeet the set targets.
"To you the lot of2022, the first Acting Chief Magistrates. You are unique because of theadditional word of acting. You are all on a race that you're going to run, whenthe 12 months are over, my prayer is you all pass, get confirmed and continuewith the journey. It will be very sad if any of you fails to meet the expectedtargets," she said.
The CR also cautionedthem to beware of the upcoming new rules on State Briefs that provide feedbackforms to advocates for their comments at the end of sessions.
The RegistrarMagistrate Affairs and Data Management, HW Rosemary Bareebe made a presentationon what the newly appointed Judicial Officers should expect from her registry."The registry has a duo function of handling magistrate affairs and datamanagement with a mandate of coordinating all affairs of the members of thelower bench on behalf of the Chief Registrar, coordinate performance of theJudges and all the courts, budgeting, handling welfare, management anddispersal of resources and finally receiving accountabilities from you," shesaid.
She added that theRegistry expects a report from the officers covering their magisterial areas asa whole, keeping an attendance register to monitor staff, providing monthlyperformance reports from the team, conducting pace counts of files availableand comparing with the previous month reports from their predecessors foraccurate reporting and also urged the members to make timely submission oftheir accountabilities for funds received.
The Acting DeputyRegistrar Land Division, HW Akullo Elizabeth advised the acting CMs on whatthey ought to do in order to succeed as Chief magistrates. "What you do notunderstand, consult. Be accountable for your actions by owning it up. Avoidbeing on the defensive rather take up the correction and become a betterperson. Make timely reports for It's what the management relies on, use thesmaller reports from your support staff to inform the bigger reports and walkthe talk with your staff by leading by example. Work with a work plan. Aboveall love your work and love people," she said.
HW Festo Nsengaencouraged members to monitor their stations using the idea of 'Management byWalking Around', this he said improves monitoring and evaluation of activitieswhich creates a big difference at the workplace. "Ensure that people are heard,listen to all sides, leave room for all parties to express themselves, properlyprepare records in your stations."
He urged them to knowtheir output at their stations and not to forget the end product of their workwhich are the decisions of the cases handled. Adding that they should factcheck with the law books all the time.
Reactions from The Meeting
The Ag. ChiefMagistrates expressed concern over being understaffed, medical insurance fundsrunning out, limited numbers of state attorneys to help clear case backlog,limited furniture and sitting space in some stations. They said that there wereredundant/absence of relevant staff in various courts and the need to fencecourts for security purposes.
The PermanentSecretary/ Secretary to the Judiciary, Dr Pius Bigirimana urged the ChiefMagistrates to aim at delivery of services in their new stations and endeavorto eradicate corruption. He cautioned them to mind the kind of legacy they willdisplay in the future in case the High Court of History sits in Judgement.
"Will we be men ofintegrity? integrity is not an occurrence, it's trained. Will we be men ofcourage? courage is not absence of fear rather mastery of it. The courage tostand against one's enemy and resist from greed and public pressure. Were you aman of Judgement? With the ability to discern wrong from right. And lastly wereyou a man of dedication? "Refuse to be compromised by public obligations andaim at serving for public good," he said.
The Commissioner HumanResource, Ms Apophia Tumwine highlighted the required terms and conditions forentry of service. She asked the acting CM's to present a Letter of assumptionof duty, a copy of the National Identity card, tax identification numbers andbank statements. She called upon them to acquire the Staff identity card of theJudiciary with specifications of their updated titles. She also urged them tofill in the Medical insurance forms in-order to be added to the service.
As a way forward, themeeting agreed on the goal to recruit more non Judicial Officers this financialYear and tasked them to start working as soon as the current officers havehanded over their offices officially.
The meeting wasmoderated by the Public Relations Officer HW Jamson Karemani.
Posted 15th, July 2022
