Hon. Justice Bart Katureebe
The Hon. Chief Justice Bart Katureebe has said the Judiciary\r\nwill institute stringent measures to punish lawyers who do not make adequate\r\npreparations prior to court appearances.
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He attributed this ill-preparedness to the backlog of\r\ncourt cases, resultant from numerous unnecessary adjournments due to failure by\r\nlawyers to organize their files.
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Hon. Justice Katureebe who was speaking at a dinner\r\norganised in his honour by the Namilyango College Old Boys Association (NACOBA)\r\nto celebrate his appointment as Chief Justice, said that this kind of behavior\r\nhas no place in the modern justice system.
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"We are going to set standards. We are not going to\r\ntolerate those people who come to court when they are not prepared,” he said.
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The April 25 evening event at\r\nProtea Hotel in Kampala was attended by among others former minister Prof.\r\nSsemakula Kiwanuka and Mr. Livingstone Ssewanyana, director of Federation for Human\r\nRights Initiative, Buganda attorney general, Hon. Apollo Makubuya and association\r\nmembers. Hon. Lady Justice Salome Bossa also attended in company of her husband, Mr. Joseph Bossa, an old boy of Namilyango.
Hon. Justice Katureebe attended Namilyango College in\r\n1965 for his A’level.
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"It is only in the Supreme Court of Uganda where you find\r\nsuch things (ill-equipped lawyers) happening and we want to create a\r\ndifference,” he added.
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He\r\nexplained that the ill preparation of lawyers causes delays and adjournments of\r\ncases. He said the only way to fight this is to either refuse adjourning the\r\ncase or limit the case adjournment days as a means of working on the files.
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"In case they come again with the same reason, we then\r\ndismiss the case,” he said.
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Hon. Justice Katureebe said his mission was for the\r\njudiciary to have more confidence from the community as this is the only way\r\nreal development can be witnessed.
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"What I want to do is to restore people’s confidence in\r\nthe judiciary. It is important that we guard the rule of law as this is the key\r\npillar to good governance and investment. I am calling on the public to support\r\nme in this by reporting all those queer things that happen in the courts of law\r\nas I cannot always be everywhere. We will then investigate and come up with a\r\nconclusion,” he said.
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NACOBA chairman Fred Kyaka awarded Hon. Justice Katureebe\r\nfor being the first member of the school to be appointed to such a position and\r\nsaid it was a challenge to many to even work harder.
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Hon. Justice Katureebe challenged the old boys to always\r\nreturn to their school to inspire the youngsters. He revealed that talks from\r\npeople such as the former Bank of Uganda governor, Mr. Joseph Mubiru, inspired him\r\nto become what he is.
Posted 30th, April 2015
