President swears in 7 new High Court Hon. Judges
The newly appointed Judges with President Yoweri Museveni at the State House in Entebbe
President Yoweri Museveni on May 9,\r\n2016 presided over the swearing in ceremony of seven newly appointed Hon.\r\nJudges of the High Court describing the process that has seen the power of the Judiciary\r\nrestored as ‘a journey that started in 1986 and whose future is growing very\r\nbright’.
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"There was a time, Justices were an\r\nendangered species. In fact one was killed and the other went to deliver judgment\r\nof a case he was handling in Nairobi. Am happy to be associated with reviving\r\nthe rule of law and restoring the power of the Judiciary,” he said.
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The Hon. Judges include Hon. Lady Justice\r\nKetrah Kitariisibwa Katunguka, Hon. Justice Moses Kazibwe Kawumi, Hon.\r\nLady Justice Bitature Mugenyi Anna, Hon. Justice Oyuko Anthony Ojok, Hon. Justice\r\nStephen Mubiru, Hon. Lady Justice Suzan Okalany and Hon. Justice Dr. Flavian \r\nZeija . The seven Hon. Judges bring the total number of Hon. Judges in the High\r\nCourt of Uganda to 50.
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The President congratulated the Hon.\r\nJudges and called on them to solve the needs of the people.
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"The needs of your people to solve\r\nare multiple. There are those that can be solved and those that can’t. Am here\r\nin my capacity as a freedom fighter, a repeatedly elected President and a\r\npolitical leader. I have tried to solve the needs of peace, making sure there\r\nis no war. The other, which I share with you, is law and order. I work with the\r\npolice and the courts of law. There is poverty, jobs creation and Justice. That\r\nis where you need to help our people. Intensify old methods in the constitution\r\nand also handle new ways to solve problems,” he said.
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Referring to the independence of\r\nthe Judiciary and the importance of dispensing Justice, the President said he\r\nwas there (election petition before the Hon. Judges) and they sat and decided\r\nright.
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"We were happy to get Justice. The Judiciary\r\nis a vital service, if there is no Justice and the rule of law, it can negate\r\nall the positive strides made in pace and security and the pace of\r\ndevelopment,” he said.
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Responding to the need for more Hon.\r\nJudges to tackle the case backlogs in the Judiciary, the President called upon\r\nthe Hon. Judges to prioritize urgent cases that have an effect on the case. He\r\ncited the commercial court where cases of land or buildings take longer to\r\nhandle and yet their value keeps going up affecting the cases.
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The President commended the Hon. Chief\r\nJustice and the Judiciary for creating new ways of handling cases by going down\r\nto visit the people at the grassroots instead of deciding cases from their\r\noffices.
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"Am happy that the Chief Justice\r\ngoes and visits districts to see the state of Justice and how things are going.\r\nEven Jesus decided to be human and came down on earth to understand human\r\nbeings and see how to assist us,” he said.
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The President said they have been\r\nstruggling with conditions of work both offices and residences, a number of\r\nhealth issues of Hon. Judges etc.
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"It’s a sacrifice on their part. We\r\nhave been discussing this with the Judiciary. We are working on computerizing\r\nthe court system and record keeping to help Hon. Judges not to sit for long\r\nhours…including remuneration of Hon. Judges. The economy is improving and the\r\nfuture is much brighter. Even these young lawyers lured to the\r\nprivate sector because of money should know that the Judiciary is getting\r\nbetter,” he said.
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The Hon. Chief Justice, Hon.\r\nJustice Bart Katureebe cautioned the\r\nnew Hon. Judges that this is an important occasion in their lives that demands\r\nhard-work and long working hours.
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He urged them to work towards\r\nbuilding a strong independent Judiciary, which is a cornerstone of democracy\r\nthat will deliver Justice to the people.
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"Exercise judicial independence.\r\nIndependence of all external influences, anything outside the court, case and\r\nthe law before you,” he said.
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He called for the appointment of\r\nmembers of the judicial service commission and quick enactment of the Judicial Independence\r\nbill.
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Also present\r\nat the swearing in ceremony were Deputy Chief Justice, Hon. Justice Steven\r\nKavuma, Principal Judge, Hon. Justice Dr. Yorokamu Bamwine, Attorney General Mr.\r\nFred Ruhindi, Head of Service Mr. John Mitala and close family members of the\r\nnew Judges.
Source: Presidential Press Unit
Posted 10th, May 2016
