Speaking in response to the lawyers' ongoing industrial action, Dr. Zeija said the strike was unnecessary and premature, criticizing its ringleaders for failing to follow proper communication channels before mobilizing their members.
The Deputy Chief Justice, Dr. Flavian Zeija, has faulted the Masaka Lawyers Guild for launching a sit-down strike before engaging in formal dialogue with the Judiciary over their grievances.
Speaking in response to the lawyers' ongoing industrial action, Dr. Zeija said the strike was unnecessary and premature, criticizing its ringleaders for failing to follow proper communication channels before mobilizing their members.
On Thursday last week, lawyers practicing under the Masaka High Court Circuit declared an industrial action protesting the severe shortage of judges, which they say has led to chronic delays in the delivery of justice.
Through their Chairperson, Alexander Lule, the association announced that they would not return to court until the Judiciary deploys at least two more judges and an additional High Court Registrar to enable the expeditious hearing of cases.
Lule argued that despite the court's vast jurisdiction covering nine districts, Masaka High Court has only one judge, a situation that severely limits its capacity to handle even a quarter of the workload.
But Dr. Zeija, the immediate former Principal Judge, dismissed the strike as uncalled for, insisting that the lawyers should have sought dialogue before taking drastic action.
He revealed that Masaka High Court had already been considered for reinforcement in the latest judicial deployment, with a second judge expected to report for duty next month.
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He clarified that Justice Victoria Nakintu Nkwanga, who was posted to Masaka, has been away on study leave but is scheduled to return and take up her assignment.
However, Salimat Mutale, one of the female lawyers practicing in the Masaka sub-region, defended the strike, arguing that the challenges in the justice system have persisted for too long.
She accused the Judiciary of ignoring continuous public outcries, noting that litigants are frustrated by unending adjournments and a backlog of unresolved cases.
Mutale cited a backlog of 415 family-related cases at the Masaka High Court that have overstayed in the system due to the absence of judges, warning that this is worsening the domestic violence situation in the area.
She also expressed concern that the shortage of judicial officers threatens the success of the Justice4Her Program, an initiative by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) aimed at improving access to justice for GBV survivors, particularly women and girls.
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Roland Muwezi, a lawyer with Basasha and Company Advocates, added that the strike is not about the lawyers' interests but reflects the wider suffering of the public, who are denied timely justice.
