By KT Reporter
Deputy Chief Justice Richard Buteera has urged magistrates to tap into the experience of retired judicial officers and senior advocates from their respective regions to address case backlogs through alternative dispute resolution (ADR).
Presiding over the closure of the 15-day induction training for newly appointed Chief Magistrates and Grade I Magistrates at Collin Hotel in Mukono on Friday, Justice Buteera emphasized the Judiciary’s commitment to innovative case backlog reduction strategies, including mediation, plea bargaining, the small claims procedure, diversion of juvenile cases, arbitration, reconciliation, and negotiation.
According to Justice Buteera, magistrates can benefit from the wealth of experience of retired judicial officers, particularly in mediation and plea bargaining. “This will help you to get more returns in case disposal which will feed into your monthly performance returns report. This will also reduce the workload before you and your supervisors will find it easy to assess you before recommending you for any confirmation,” he noted.
Beyond ADR, Justice Buteera also called on magistrates to eradicate corruption from the courts, citing widespread public concerns. “There are many complaints that getting bail in some courts especially at the magistrates’ courts level is difficult without giving what is called ‘facilitation.’ This is unacceptable. It is criminal and must not be heard of in the judiciary.”
Supreme Court Justice Mike Chibita, chairperson of the Judicial Training Institute (JTI) Governing Council, emphasized the need for magistrates to exhibit transformative leadership at their workplaces. He explained that transformative leadership involves “proper personal behaviours, time management, use of emotional intelligence, and adhering to ethical standards.”
He added that this would lead to achieving positive outcomes. JTI Executive Director, Lady Justice Damalie Lwanga, commended the new magistrates for successfully completing the induction and encouraged them to continue seeking guidance from senior judicial mentors.
“Find more mentors from within your communities, consult them, learning never ends,” she advised. The trained magistrates appreciated the Judiciary for the induction, saying it had helped them address many uncertainties.
“On top of being inspired by the trainers, all questions that have been in my mind at the time of arrival to this training have been answered, especially questions concerning procedural matters,” said Ronald Mwesigye from Katakwi-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
