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{
    "id": 588964,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/588964/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 200,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Hon. Ochieng",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 2955,
        "legal_name": "David Ouma Ochieng'",
        "slug": "david-ouma-ochieng"
    },
    "content": "travel to either Busia or Kisumu. We used to spend so much money. Now we have a High Court station with a judge in Siaya. That brings justice closer to the people. As we bring courts closer to the people, we should also ensure that the management systems are in such a way that justice works for everybody. Discipline is very important, not just among the judges, but also among all the cadres in the Judiciary, from the clerks to the registrars tasked with management at every station. This Bill creates a system where the Registrar of the High Court, who reports to the Chief Registrar of the Judiciary, also has some powers and administrative role that he or she can play in ensuring that her station is able to run itself in a transparent, effective and expedient manner in as far as management is concerned. The word “management” is very important for me. How files are kept, digitisation and how complaints are resolved before a matter gets to a judge is very important. It is important to have qualified employees doing the work. Enforcement of judgments of the High Court is very important. The debate going on now in this country is whether there are laws for weak people and laws for strong people. Is there a choice in obeying court orders? This Bill gives the High Court radical powers on what to do to ensure that their decisions are enforced, and what to do if one does not comply with court orders. I like what the former speaker said. You cannot choose which laws and court orders to obey and which ones to ignore. It was so laughable to see the Government telling teachers to obey a court order, yet when the court gave an order that they should pay teachers, they ignored it saying there was no money. You did not see them negotiating with teachers and saying: The court has given an order; how do we go about implementing it? In 2013 when the Supreme Court ruled that Uhuru Kenyatta had won the presidential election, our Coalition said: We do not agree with the ruling but we shall respect it. When the court made an order that teachers be paid, we expected the President to say: We do not agree with the court ruling, but we will find a way of implementing it. Let us ensure that court orders are enforced and that where there is difficulty, it is explained. We should not wish court orders away. I am happy that in future, the court, sitting on its own motion, will be able to punish anybody for contempt. I have also seen provisions on case management, court records and court performance. There was a time in this country when court files would disappear. Someone would hide court files. This system will ensure that court records are kept well. There will be no hiding of court records. Above all, clerks who manage court records will be transferred regularly. Sometimes court clerks form a cartel, and do not want to be transferred. A judge is posted to, say Kisumu or Eldoret, and then a clerk tells him: This is the way we do things here. This system will ensure that court clerks can be transferred every now and then to ensure that there will be transparency and nobody will grow bigger than the judges who preside over cases. Hon. Temporary Deputy Speaker, with those many remarks, I support this Bill. I urge my fellow Members to support it, so that we can ensure that our Judiciary is transparent and able to deliver justice to Kenyans. Thank you so much."
}