PS points out key challenges at Justice ministry

The Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Permanent Secretary (PS), Mr Robert Kasande, has outlined five key challenges hampering service delivery in the ministry.

In an interview with the Monitor yesterday, Mr Kasande cited case backlog, financial constraints, inadequate facilitation of attorneys and witnesses, limited staff, and congestion, especially in prisons.

“In the Financial Year 2021/2022, courts disposed of 205,967 cases of a total caseload of 373,974. This accounted for 55 percent of all cases in the system,” the access to justice sub programme report reads in part. This means the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs is stuck with 168,007 cases.

“In total, we have 187 attorneys. It would be very good if we double those numbers. People are aware of their rights, which is a good success for Ugandans but we need to match them with the numbers of state attorneys in the country,” he said.

The ministry called for more funding to recruit staff and open offices at different levels.

“Inadequate facilitation of attorneys and witness affects the ability of government to be effectively represented in the courts of law for local and international cases,” Mr Kasande said.

“Finances have been a challenge to the entire government but we have seen some improvements in the funding of our programmes. For instance, in  2020/2021, our funding was Shs2.45 trillion but last year it was increased to Shs2.47 trillion. We still need more than what was released last financial year,” he said.

The PS also said limited funding had contributed to prison congestion, which puts pressure on housing, sanitation and medicare. He added that there are also challenges in purchasing uniforms and delivery of prisoners to courts.

He added: “This may be addressed partly by expanding capacity and crime prevention measures and also focusing on alternative modes of punishment away from traditional incarceration.”

Achievements

The PS revealed that the ministry had managed to win public trust in the justice system.

The ministry, he said, had also invested in the rehabilitation of inmates which led to a reduction in the rate of reoffending to 14.3 percent and consequently to a reduction in the crime rate from 502 to 457 in the 2021.

Mr Kasande said the ministry launched the construction of JLSO house which is expected to be completed in 2024.

“We are continuing to invest in the construction of justice centres increasing the number of districts with one-stop frontline JLOS points from 87 to 90 of the targeted 117 districts translating into 74 districts coverage. Even where the construction is awaited, the sub-programme institutions are opening service points with 117 service points operational of the targeted 120 districts,” Mr Kasande said.

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