Official praises judicial achievements

HUYE – The Huye Intermediate Court has taken tremendous strides since the judicial sector reforms in 2004, the court’s vice president, Imaculee Uwera has said.She made the remarks yesterday during activities to mark the judiciary’s accountability week. Uwera noted that the court had settled over 7,000 cases since 2004, attributing it to hard work and professionalism.“We now have highly qualified and motivated staff who have made such an achievement in a short period of time,” said Uwera. As part of the activities, was an open day where court officials showcased the achievements registered since 2004 while highlighting the challenges faced. The exercise was held at the court’s premises in Huye town. It was meant to create public awareness of court activities, highlight achievements of the sector and to initiate dialogue between local communities and the judiciary. Uwera said that the introduction of community arbitrators locally known as ‘Abunzi’ has reduced on the number of cases making it to the mainstream courts. Many petty cases are solved before they reach the courts, she said. Uwera cited inadequate court space for staff and storing court documents as some of the challenges. “We also lack a proper documentation system for old court documents and files,” she added. Gaspard Rudatinya, an official working with the prosecution department, said that citizens should utilise the relevant institutions before addressing their cases to the higher authorities. “It is usually a case of ignorance on how the system works. We appeal to such people to exhaust all possible avenues before jumping queue to address such issues before higher government officials,” he said. Other residents requested court to make the payment process of court fees and access to written court judgments easy and convenient. Ends