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{
    "id": 588737,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/588737/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 188,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon.(Prof.) Nyikal",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 434,
        "legal_name": "James Nyikal",
        "slug": "james-nyikal"
    },
    "content": "Setting out divisions to look at the areas of law enhances the competence with which people receive services. I am particularly concerned and impressed with having a family division, children’s division and a constitutional and human rights division. The family and children’s divisions to me are such an important division. There are so many issues in this country. Many families cannot go to court to resolve issues by getting quality judgment. If we have divisions that specifically deal with family issues, we will develop appropriate competences. We need the Constitutional and Human Rights Division because of our Constitution. A lot of issues that will need interpretation will come up. The court administration structure is impressive. I am impressed with the clear structures put in place, the job descriptions and responsibilities of each officer of the court are clearly set out. With this, there should be no inefficiency. In any case, it will be easy to address such inefficiency if it occurs. Clauses 19 and 20 give clear qualifications for, and the duties of, a Registrar and a Deputy Registrar of the High Court. This will ensure that we know the capacity of people in those positions and what to expect of them. The establishment of an advisory committee is extremely important except that we will need to get into the membership of this committee some well-informed lay person, who will represent the consumers of court services. The provision for reconciliation and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms is very important. It will save time and money. However, it is important to look at the rules. I am particularly concerned with the area of child sex abuse. If you leave it that there are alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, people will sit down and all these things will be swept under the carpet, because people will agree. We will need to provide rules for such areas to ensure that no criminal offences are swept under the carpet. I like the provisions on record keeping and integrity of registries. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, you know the importance of having information better than us. Africa has not done very well in development merely because of record keeping and access to those records, so that decisions are made on the basis of facts. In this digital era, we should make court records very easily accessible. I am impressed by the provision for regular performance evaluation and performance contracting. This, if implemented, will avoid the painful vetting processes that we have gone through. To develop a code of conduct and monitoring mechanism for compliance will take us a long way. The provision that a judge other than the one who listened to a case can read out the judgment is progressive. I have heard many cases where people wait for months because a particular judge has to read the judgment in a case they were hearing. With those remarks, Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, I support this Bill."
}