•New judges also yet to get Sh500 million for car grants.
•Judiciary registrar says allocations critical for optimum service delivery.
Image: CHARLENE MALWA
The Judiciary has requested the National Assembly for additional funding saying it has inadequate resources for handling election petitions that could arise from the August 9 general election.
This topped its request to MPs for an extra Sh5 billion which it says is not provided in the budget for the financial year 2022-23 yet it is critical to the poll process.
Judiciary Chief Registrar Anne Amadi raised the concerns in a letter to National Assembly Clerk Michael Sialai in line with ongoing budget submissions for the next financial year.
She said the courts, overall, have a budget shortfall of over Sh18 billion having been provided with half of the Sh39.56 billion needed for smooth operations.
Amadi said as a result, “various key priority areas of operation have remained underfunded”, calling on the exchequer to consider adjusting the allocations upwards.
She cited a Sh681 million deficit in election-related expenses, being for political parties disputes and general election petitions.
The Judiciary has fears that the poll petitions may double the numbers registered in the 2017 elections, citing trends from the 2013 vote.
“There were 188 election petitions filed in 2013. The cases increased to 388 in 2017. Going by this trend, it is expected that that in 2022, the petitions will double,” Amadi said.
Asked about what the funding gap means, she told the Star that the money is needed as judges normally move from their stations to hear petitions in other jurisdictions.
“We normally have judges travelling to other counties to deal with cases where familiarity may compromise the outcomes of a case. For example, a judge in Mombasa cannot hear poll petitions in the region,” she said.
She added that judges usually move with their security –bodyguards, and several staffers attached to their offices such as researchers.
The Registrar further requested Sh100 million to set up special benches amid expectations there would be a flurry of petitions seeking interpretation on the court process.
“In the build-up to the general election, cases that require constitutional interpretation are expected to increase thus necessitating hearings by special benches of an uneven number of judges,” she explained.
Amadi further sought Sh50 million to establish mobile courts and circuits— judicial slang for judges moving from one station to another.
It has emerged that there are 123 constituencies without any court and “thus must be served through mobile courts and circuits.”
The Registrar also reported there were eight counties that don’t have High Court stations and also seven others without any judge, hence relying on circuits.
“One Court of Appeal station does not have sitting judges and hence is served through circuits,” the registrar said.
The Judiciary is also seeking Sh1 billion more to go towards the ongoing construction of courts to help settle pending bills.
“Underfunding and budget cuts have led to the accumulation of pending bills which are likely to accrue interest as per the contract terms,” Amadi said.
The Judiciary has also requested Sh500 million to provide car grants to new judges who were recently posted in the department.
Court awards of up to Sh625 million remain unfunded, Amadi said, revealing that some of the bills are old and remain unsettled due to lack of funding.
The Judiciary is also yet to secure cash for the retirement of judicial officers and staff necessary “for optimal service delivery.”
The funding gaps issue also emerged during a meeting with the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee of the National Assembly on Tuesday.
The National Treasury has allocated the department Sh843 million additional funding to cater for among others electoral preparedness, but for the current financial year.
This is even as the courts remain starved of cash to settle pending bills, presently at Sh1.3 billion of which court awards accounted for Sh1 billion.
Also pending in the current financial year budget is Sh108 million for retirement perks of retired chief justice David Maraga and other judges.
Part of the Sh984 million funding gaps includes Pro Bono services of Sh10 million for pauper briefs in robbery with violence and murder cases.
"Courthouses in Mandera and Garissa…constructed modern courts…doesn’t present the traffic of cases… the fourth storey in Mandera not comparative to the traffic you receive in the courts,"
"We think we want to conduct a field study on pilot or selected courthouses to see the designs you have come up with and see if this is value for money," she said.
Funding gaps have also hampered the roll-out of small claims courts with the Judiciary saying it would require Sh198 million.
With the increased use of digital platforms to handle cases, the Judiciary has decried a funding gap of Sh600 million to roll out the digital strategy in all courts.
Amadi has also asked MPs to provide Sh290 million for mediation cases, saying Sh14 billion was saved through the settlement of cases through the system.