In an effort aimed at bringing justice closer to the people, the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) Tuesday launched a sub registry in Kampala.This brings the number of registries in the region to three after Kigali and Dar es Salaam.Uganda’s State Minister for Internal Affairs, James Baba, observed that there is still a lot that needs to be done for citizens to fully access justice rendered by the regional court.“We hope that as cases are received and filed, measures are put in place to facilitate those that may need to travel to Arusha to have their cases heard,” Baba said.The court sits in Arusha, the northern Tanzanian town that also serves as the headquarters of the East African Community (EAC) Secretariat.He decried the court’s insufficient visibility and limited capacity in terms of inadequate organizational structure and financial resources to enable it play its role as envisaged in the EAC treaty.EACJ President Justice Harold Nsekela said the court is in the process to procure a case management system which will electronically connect the established sub registries with the Arusha based main registry.“We are also exploring the possibility of introducing electronic filing of cases which will facilitate interactions between the EACJ and all its stakeholders,” Nsekela said.Uganda’s Chief Justice, Benjamin Odoki reiterated the Ugandan judiciary’s commitment to working with the regional court to push forward the region’s integration agenda.EACJ is working towards opening sub registries in all the five EAC partner states before the close of this year.
