Chief Justice Bart Katureebe receives an award from National Union of Disabled Person of Uganda (NUDIPU) at the High Court.
While\r\nreceiving an award of appreciation from representatives of the disabled for two\r\nlandmark court rulings that recognized their plight Chief Justice, Hon. Justice\r\nBart Katureebe said that they are never appreciated for the work they do.
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"For\r\nus we are used to being insulted, but I am glad that we have been recognized by\r\na section of the public," Hon. Justice Katureebe said after receiving the\r\naward from the Executive Director Nation Union of the Disabled Persons in\r\nUganda (NUDIPU).
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He\r\nsaid that though there are a few corrupt characters in the judiciary, majority\r\nof the judicial officers are good people and are hard workers. He noted that\r\nthe Judiciary is one of those rarely appreciated professions in the country.
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The\r\naward was presented to him following a land mark ruling in the Fort Portal High\r\nCourt last year, delivered by Hon. Justice David Batema, nullifying the powers\r\nof the Minister of Justice to preside over cases involving convicts with mental\r\nillness.
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Hon.\r\nJustice Batema declared the Minister's orders as unconstitutional and stated\r\nthat it usurps the autonomy of the Judiciary in the Administration of Justice\r\nfor persons with mental illness.
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"Any\r\ncourt waiting for the Minister's orders is giving away the independence of the\r\nJudiciary and is in one way or another accepting to be ordered around by the\r\nminister who, as experience has shown, is too busy to issue the orders,"\r\nhe said in his ruling.
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The\r\nruling was in reference to a petition filed by a lawyer, Mr. Cosma Kateeba on\r\nbehalf of Mr. Eric Bushoborozi who had spent over 10 years in prison waiting\r\nfor the Ministers' orders.
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Mr.\r\nBushoborozi was first detained at Katojo Government Prison, Fort Portal in 2002\r\nfor the murder of his child whose head he cut off claiming that he was killing\r\na snake.
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He\r\nwas tried in the High Court before Hon. Justice Rugadya Atwooki and was\r\ndeclared to be insane and therefore declared not guilty, but could not be\r\nreleased since the Penal Code Act Section 194 and the Trial on Indictment Act\r\n(TIA) provide for the Minister's orders.
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He\r\nwas then remanded on December 1, 2006 pending the minister's orders as to where\r\nhe should be taken for mental treatment or otherwise be dealt with.
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Mr.\r\nKateeba in his petition stated that since December 2006, the Minister never\r\nmade any orders in respect of Mr. Bushoborozi, even though the prisons officers\r\nregularly wrote to him a reminder of the case.
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In\r\nhis ruling Hon. Justice Batema explained that the main purpose for the Minister's\r\norders would be for ensuring proper medical and other treatment of a criminal\r\nlunatic.
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He\r\nsaid that instead of waiting for the order, a trial Judge can ably and legally\r\nexercise inherent powers of the court to order for the proper medical and other\r\ntreatment of the convict.
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In\r\norder to do this, he said that the provisions of the law that give the Minister\r\nsuch powers can be construed to be the powers of court under articles 126 and\r\n274 of the Constitution.
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Hon.\r\nJustice Batema at the end of his ruling made several recommendations for the Judiciary\r\nto implement to ensure that the mentally challenged get timely justice.
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Among\r\nthese recommendations, he asked Judges to recall all files of those with mental\r\nillness try them and give appropriate sentences instead of waiting for the\r\nMinister.
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A\r\nMinisters' order is given by the Minister of Justice in cases where court\r\ndeclares an accused person guilty but insane and declines to grant a sentence\r\nto wait for the minister of justice to give further orders on whether to punish\r\nor release the convict. In search circumstances, the convict is remanded\r\nwaiting for the order.
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Under\r\nsection 105 and 48 of the Trial on Indictment Act provides for the ministers'\r\norders.
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Currently\r\nthere are 42 mentally challenged convicts in government prisons across the\r\ncountry, waiting for the Ministers orders.
This article was published in the New Vision on July 8, 2016
Posted 11th, July 2016
