Corruption in judiciary, admits Odoki
Oct 06, 2002
THE Chief Justice, Benjamin Odoki, conceded yesterday that corruption exists in the Judiciary but said the problem was not as massive as portrayed
By Anne Mugisa & Abubaker Mukose
THE Chief Justice, Benjamin Odoki, conceded yesterday that corruption exists in the Judiciary but said the problem was not as massive as portrayed.
Odoki said all judicial officers must rededicate themselves to professional service to restore peoples’ confidence in the Judiciary.
The Chief Justice was opening the East African Magistrates and Judges Association conference at Jinja Nile Resort Hotel on Saturday.
Judges and magistrates from Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda converged in Jinja on Friday to thrush out ways of “strengthening judicial integrity in East Africa.â€
Odoki, who was flanked by his Tanzanian counterpart, Justice Barnabas Samatta, said research carried out after a public outcry revealed that some allegations were based on actual incidents where judicial officers solicited or were offered and received bribes.
“Some of them receive the bribes directly or through intermediaries,†he added.
He said most of the time, court clerks or impostors solicit bribes alleging they are for judicial officers.
Odoki said unscrupulous litigants maliciously allege that they bribed a judge or magistrate. He said yet another group are the disgruntled litigants who claim that they lost the case(s) because the other party bribed the judge.
Odoki, however, said all judicial officers must look into the cause of public discontent with the Judiciary.
He said, “True understanding and respect for the Judiciary can be achieved only as a public response to our integrity, impartiality, fair play, conscientious attention to duty and simple courtesy.
“Public esteem will not be regained until each judge is willing to accept personal accountability as an integral part of the responsible group. If we fail or refuse to do our part, no one else can or will rebuild the judicial image.â€
Odoki said, “Evil grows because good men do nothing about it,†in reference to a statement attributed to Edmund Burke.
He said public outcry against the Judiciary was often a result of persistent frustration of litigants.
Odoki said criticism is flowing from a spectrum of stakeholders, ranging from the ordinary court user to the highest executive arm of the State.
He said sometimes the criticism is extreme, like accusations that there is a lot of corruption in the Judiciary and that the courts are incompetent or unpatriotic.
“One may not outrightly refute these accusations or confirm them,†Odoki said. “What is useful is to focus on the causes or origins of these criticisms which go to the core of judicial integrity,†he added.
“Allegations exist and originate from some source. As long as they persist, they damage the image of the institutions and undermine public confidence in them,†Odoki said. He said the backlog of cases and long remand periods must be tackled.
THE Chief Justice, Benjamin Odoki, conceded yesterday that corruption exists in the Judiciary but said the problem was not as massive as portrayed.
Odoki said all judicial officers must rededicate themselves to professional service to restore peoples’ confidence in the Judiciary.
The Chief Justice was opening the East African Magistrates and Judges Association conference at Jinja Nile Resort Hotel on Saturday.
Judges and magistrates from Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda converged in Jinja on Friday to thrush out ways of “strengthening judicial integrity in East Africa.â€
Odoki, who was flanked by his Tanzanian counterpart, Justice Barnabas Samatta, said research carried out after a public outcry revealed that some allegations were based on actual incidents where judicial officers solicited or were offered and received bribes.
“Some of them receive the bribes directly or through intermediaries,†he added.
He said most of the time, court clerks or impostors solicit bribes alleging they are for judicial officers.
Odoki said unscrupulous litigants maliciously allege that they bribed a judge or magistrate. He said yet another group are the disgruntled litigants who claim that they lost the case(s) because the other party bribed the judge.
Odoki, however, said all judicial officers must look into the cause of public discontent with the Judiciary.
He said, “True understanding and respect for the Judiciary can be achieved only as a public response to our integrity, impartiality, fair play, conscientious attention to duty and simple courtesy.
“Public esteem will not be regained until each judge is willing to accept personal accountability as an integral part of the responsible group. If we fail or refuse to do our part, no one else can or will rebuild the judicial image.â€
Odoki said, “Evil grows because good men do nothing about it,†in reference to a statement attributed to Edmund Burke.
He said public outcry against the Judiciary was often a result of persistent frustration of litigants.
Odoki said criticism is flowing from a spectrum of stakeholders, ranging from the ordinary court user to the highest executive arm of the State.
He said sometimes the criticism is extreme, like accusations that there is a lot of corruption in the Judiciary and that the courts are incompetent or unpatriotic.
“One may not outrightly refute these accusations or confirm them,†Odoki said. “What is useful is to focus on the causes or origins of these criticisms which go to the core of judicial integrity,†he added.
“Allegations exist and originate from some source. As long as they persist, they damage the image of the institutions and undermine public confidence in them,†Odoki said. He said the backlog of cases and long remand periods must be tackled.