Court of Appeal commences hearing criminal cases in Gulu

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT  | A criminal Court of Appeal session has commenced at the High Court in Gulu. The session that will run from November 25 to December 5, 2019, will handle 44 cases to be presided over by a panel of three judges; Justice Kenneth Kakuru, Justice Percy Nighty and Justice Remmy Kasule.

All the 44 cases under consideration in the Gulu circuit emanated from High Court sittings in Acholi and Lango sub-regions. They include 23 cases of murder, three rape cases, 13 defilement cases, one case of man slaughter and three robbery cases.

At the opening of the Criminal Court of Appeal session, the Deputy Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo said that the regional sitting by the court aims at cutting the cost of dispensing justice. He decried the inadequate number of judges in the country, a situation he said is responsible for lack of human resources to help the courts dispose of pending cases in the court of Appeal.

Justice Kenneth Kakuru, who will preside over the sessions said the intention of the court is to bring justice to the ordinary resident Ugandans as opposed to the ordinary citizens going to the court in order to give confidence in ordinary citizens and build public trust in the country’s Judiciary system.

Gulu Resident Judge Justice Stephen Mubiru applauded the Court of Appeal for the initiative to deliver justice despite financial constraints and given the expensive nature of appellant justice in the country.

Gulu Resident District Commissioner Maj. Santos Okot Lapolo appealed to the judiciary to be consistent with the Criminal Court of Appeal sessions before the common man loses sight of their cases.

Meanwhile, Conrad Oroya Obonyo, of Uganda Law Society representing the appellants expressed gratitude that the court coming down to the grassroots saves relatives of the accused from the high cost of following their cases and comfort of mind.

In January this year, more than 155,400 cases were pending at all levels of courts according to a report by Case Backlog Reduction Committee – CBRC. The committee revealed that criminal cases constitute 44 per cent of unresolved cases, civil cases 33 percent, land cases 14 percent, family cases three per cent while commercial cases constituted two percent.

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