Chief Justice Sam Rugege has warned that incompetence in the judiciary will not be tolerated.

Speaking at the opening of a three-day retreat for judges and court clerks from across the country at Gabiro Military Training Centre of Excellence in Gatsibo District, yesterday, Prof. Rugege said the retreat would revolve around the role of judges in nation building and give participants time to reflect on their mandate.

"We will discuss issues related to our day-to-day tasks, but apart from professional concerns, we will discuss the issue of service delivery and corruption in details,” he said.

Rugege noted that the general performance and competence of Rwandan courts and judges were outstanding.

However, he said there were some individuals that were below par in performance, adding that incompetence would not be tolerated.

"Our image both inside the country and outside is very good. It is on record that we have been good performers.

Poor service or mishandling of cases by some individuals cannot be tolerated any more. There is no excuse whatsoever. We will punish such people. Any poor service, whether out of irresponsibility or high level incompetence, cannot go unpunished.”

Value of evaluation

Rugege said the participants would benefit from evaluation made about their work by court inspectors.

"If we fight for justice, we must allow criticism on where we go wrong. I urge participants to tackle the issue of corruption seriously. We will depend on their views to fight it. Bribes are given in a secretive way, but the effects come out in the open. We need whistleblowers. The Constitution gives us powers; we must, thus, work hard not to lose public confidence,” he added.

The Chief Justice observed that injustice of any kind is bad, but it is worse when it is brought about by the very system supposed to fight it.

"Where do you want somebody seeking justice from you to go after failing them? Your decisions as judges are very powerful. Imagine if your decisions are done in your interest, it would be terrible. Let’s live by our oaths as judges. Be guided by your consciousness,” Rugege said.

He lamented that 10 years after major reforms in the Judiciary, some wrongs were still being perpetuated by people expected to have gained enough experience.

"Judges got enough refresher courses that no one is even demanding more training, it is thus inconceivable that some of them would still be messing,” the Chief Justice said.

Meanwhile, the magistrates remained upbeat that they would gain a lot from the retreat, noting that such discussion settled standing issues.

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