Let Judiciary do its work â€" Odoki
Feb 17, 2008
OVERZEALOUS state operatives should leave the Judiciary to do its work without undue interference, the Chief Justice has said.
By Hillary Nsambu
OVERZEALOUS state operatives should leave the Judiciary to do its work without undue interference, the Chief Justice has said.
Benjamin Odoki made the appeal while opening the New Law Year at the High Court in Kampala on Friday.
“The Ugandan Judiciary, like in other Commonwealth countries, is often confronted with challenges that threaten its independence.
“These threats may not necessarily be deliberate, but may unconsciously occur as a result of the overzealousness of some state operatives,†he noted.
Odoki was referring to the “regrettable incident†of May 1, 2007 when security operatives invaded the High Court premises in Kampala after court had granted bail to rebel suspects.
He said the incident forced the Judiciary to suspend business until the executive made a formal explanation.
“All arms of the state should guard against a re-occurrence. The Judiciary will always defend its territory if it is unjustifiably encroached upon. The three arms of the state should respect each other’s territory to promote good governance, human rights and the rule of law,†Odoki advised.
He also called on the President, to expedite the appointments of more judges to meet the demand for judicial services.
The Judiciary, the Chief Justice noted, experiences serious financial and human resource hardships.
He said new judges were last appointed in October 2004 but they had since then lost a justice of the Supreme Court while another in the same court had retired.
“This means the Supreme Court has no coram to hear constitutional appeals.
“Two High Court judges have since retired and another is due to retire next month. They have not been replaced.â€
The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Dr Edward Khiddu Makubuya, said the Judiciary should be financially independent.
“The Government should increase funding to all agencies within the justice system. This will contribute to strengthening the independence of the Judiciary,†he said.
OVERZEALOUS state operatives should leave the Judiciary to do its work without undue interference, the Chief Justice has said.
Benjamin Odoki made the appeal while opening the New Law Year at the High Court in Kampala on Friday.
“The Ugandan Judiciary, like in other Commonwealth countries, is often confronted with challenges that threaten its independence.
“These threats may not necessarily be deliberate, but may unconsciously occur as a result of the overzealousness of some state operatives,†he noted.
Odoki was referring to the “regrettable incident†of May 1, 2007 when security operatives invaded the High Court premises in Kampala after court had granted bail to rebel suspects.
He said the incident forced the Judiciary to suspend business until the executive made a formal explanation.
“All arms of the state should guard against a re-occurrence. The Judiciary will always defend its territory if it is unjustifiably encroached upon. The three arms of the state should respect each other’s territory to promote good governance, human rights and the rule of law,†Odoki advised.
He also called on the President, to expedite the appointments of more judges to meet the demand for judicial services.
The Judiciary, the Chief Justice noted, experiences serious financial and human resource hardships.
He said new judges were last appointed in October 2004 but they had since then lost a justice of the Supreme Court while another in the same court had retired.
“This means the Supreme Court has no coram to hear constitutional appeals.
“Two High Court judges have since retired and another is due to retire next month. They have not been replaced.â€
The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Dr Edward Khiddu Makubuya, said the Judiciary should be financially independent.
“The Government should increase funding to all agencies within the justice system. This will contribute to strengthening the independence of the Judiciary,†he said.