HE the President of Uganda addressing Hon. Justices and Judges at the 20th Annual Judges' Conference 2018
President Museveni during the opening of the 20th Annual Judges Conference promised to increase the pay of judicial officers alongside scientists.
"On the issue of salaries, we are now in position to do something for you provided we break down this wastage and we shall save 1000bn shillings and the target by government is that our scientists and government lawyers should get comparably salaries with best practices in the region at least," said the President amidst clapping from the judicial officers in attendance.
Adding: "so on the issue of salaries, we are going to move provided we move in a tough way. I hope this independence of the Judiciary will not see the tendency of sweepers saying because I am sweeping where the judge is sitting, lets pay the professional ones now, in future we can cater for them too,"
Still at the same function, the President called upon the judges to prioritize hearing of cases like homicide, rape, land and commercial cases, saying that what destabilizes a country is unresolved murders.
"If you cannot handle these cases in adequate numbers, you at least handle the rape, homicide and commercial cases because that is money and land if you can. If there is to be backlog, let it be with divorce and assault cases and other small cases. What destabilizes society is life, when life is lost and there is no answer, people become worried. Rape is murder because when someone rapes a woman, they can infect them with diseases. That is what I can advise," the President advised the Judges
The President also in his remarks, urged Judges not to desist from imposing a death sentence to the criminals they think deserve the ultimate punishment of death by hanging.
HE Museveni was reiterating a similar call he made last week when he promised to sign on the death executions warrants of condemned prisoners as a means of curbing the rising crime in society.
The President added that he is going to repent completely from the past mistake that he was making of refraining himself from signing the death executions for death row inmates.
The head of the State also vowed to continue advocating for imposition of a death sentence until here tires from leadership.
"I saw today in the papers some NGOs agitating against the death sentence that they don't want it.I don't know what reason they are giving and I cannot follow their logic," HE Museveni said
"However, here in our society which is a pre-industrial society, in your confusion as Judges, you refuse to give a death sentence when it should be given that oba......it's what and what....because of some confused concept," he added
"For us in our society, we believe in the mosaic law of Moses of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. If you interfere with that, you will see the instability you will cause. In fact, I have been making a mistake not signing the death sentences. I now repent completely from that mistake,"
Speaking at the same Judges' conference, Chief Justice, Hon. Justice Bart Katureebe, asked thePresident to invest extra resources in order to revamp the administration ofjustice in the country.
Hon. Justice Katureebe also called upon the President to lift the recruitment ban on the Judiciary so that it can address the justice needs of 95% of the population that lacks access to justice services.
The head of the Judiciary went on to break down that out of the 532 Grade One Magistrates, he only has 192 of them, about Chief Magistrates, he said he only has 42 and yet he needs 100.
About High Court Judges, he told the President that they have 58 and yet he needs 82 and in the Court of Appeal, there is a staffing gap of six justices.
The Chief justice also told the President that the number of cases per Judge is likely to hit more than 1,000 cases in the next two years given that case filings are increasing at an annual rate of 10%.
But in response to the Hon. Justice Katureebe's pleas, the President explained that since there is a lot of wastage in the government system that is entrenched in the constitution, corruption and under collection of taxes, it's not possible now to spread out resources to all departments.
The President went onto admit to be the author behind the meagre resource allocation to the Judiciary since he does not believe in the philosophy of scattering resources and that he has instead concentrated more resources into roads and electricity.
Hon. Justice Katureebe also used this function to call upon HE Museveni's government to organize elections for local council I and II that were late last year suspended to help and offer a form of justice that is accessible to the most impoverished people.
Posted 23rd, January 2018
