Judicial officers warned against unnecessary adjournment of cases
What you need to know:
- In September, Principal Judge Flavian Zeija said during an open court session that the Judiciary is in the process of installing biometric systems in courts so that every judicial officer has to clock in and also clock out for work.
Judicial officers have been cautioned against unnecessary adjournment of cases that have since contributed to the staggering case backlog .
The deputy registrar of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC), Mr Samuel Mugisa, said the unnecessary adjournment of cases has greatly hampered the quick dispensation of justice as demanded for by the Constitution.
“Adjournment of cases may not be stopped soon but it should not be at will or for fun. We have talked to judicial officers to avoid long adjournments because people have to get justice faster,” Mr Mugisa said yesterday during his visitation of Arua Court.
He said some of the adjournments are done due to shortage of judicial officers but he was quick to add that they have been in the process of recruiting more officers to address the challenge.
The JSC is a government body that is mandated to recruit and discipline errant judicial officers. During an open court session two months ago at Arua High Court, litigants complained of how adjudication of cases had become an expensive venture due to unnecessary adjournments. Some of the concerned litigants claimed to have sold off their livestock, land and other valuable property to meet transport costs, accommodation and feeding as they pursue their cases.
In September, Principal Judge Flavian Zeija said during an open court session that the Judiciary is in the process of installing biometric systems in courts so that every judicial officer has to clock in and also clock out for work. This innovation that has since been installed in some of the courts, especially in Kampala, are to help in curbing absenteeism by judicial officers. He said the judiciary plans to regionalise the Inspectorate of Courts so that judicial officers are monitored for efficiency.
Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo, in his Judiciary Annual Performance Report released in August, said the overall case backlog of all courts stood at 50,592 cases.
The report also showed that the biggest backlog was at the High Court with a total of 31,657 cases pending disposal. Some of the key drivers included absenteeism and frequent adjournment of cases by judicial officers.
