The team during the data cleaning exercise
MUKONO: The second phase of the re-organization of the court registries and data cleaning exercise has kicked off.
According to Chief Registrar, HW Esta Nambayo, this second phase will cover Mukono, Jinja and Mpigi High Court Circuits.
This is after the completion of physical file count in Masaka and Mbarara High Court circuits.
The Chief Registrar led a team comprised the Registrar High Court, HW Tom Chemutai and Judiciary Technical Advisor, Mr Andrew Khaukha, to sensitize staff at the Mukono High Court on how the data cleaning exercise will be conducted.
She handed to the Mukono Deputy Registrar, HW Cissy Mudhasi, copies of the data collection tool.
According to a Caseload Report compiled by the Judiciary ICT Department, as at March 20, 2019 Mukono High Court had 3,223 matters in total:- 1,547 Land Matters, 626 Family,602 Civil and 448 Criminal matters.
The CR said the purpose of the data cleaning up exercise is to ensure that accurate data is captured.
HW Mudhasi said the Court would need at least two weeks to carry out a physical file count as well as update the Court Case Administration System.
The CR said her team will close-monitor the exercise during the two weeks to offer guidance and assess progress.
During the interface with staff, concerns were raised on matters that have multiple file numbers as well as frustrations arising from frequent power outages that make it difficult to update CCAS in time.
Judiciary computerized its Court Case Administration System in 1997, but since then there has been a disparity between the figures presented by this system on the actual number of cases pending before the courts using the manual case count.
The Mukono Resident Judge, Hon. Lady Justice Margaret Mutonyi welcomed the data cleaning exercise saying it will help identify old files in the system.
She added that the exercise would help ascertain the backlog at the court and devise strategies on how to eliminate it.
Hon.Lady Justice Mutonyi said the Court, which was created three years ago,inherited some of the files, which were previously handled by Jinja High Court and Nakawa High Court, which has caused confusion between parties.
She sighted a matter that was filed at the High Court in Kampala in 1995 but was transferred to Jinja and now it is being handled from Mukono High Court.
She advised that when new circuits are started, they are better off handling new matters filed there rather than inheriting older cases from other High Court Circuits.
A team from the International Justice Mission will be at the Court to assess its registry re-organization needs.
Posted 25th, March 2019
