EACJ sub-registry to open office in Dar es Salaam
Written by MASEMBE TAMBWE
ESTABLISHMENT of the East African Court of Justice (EACJ) sub-registry in Dar es Salaam will bring judicial services closer to Tanzanians and the people of the East African region.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of East Africa Cooperation, Dr Stergomena Tax, told journalists that the launch of the sub-registry would be held on September 7, 2012 at the Court of Appeal premises.
"As you might be aware, in 2005 member states started implementing the Customs Union and in July 2010 the Common Market was established. These were important landmarks and the opening of the sub-registry is an addition to that," she said.
The opening of the Dar es Salaam EACJ sub-registry follows a decision reached by the Council of Ministers that the court should open sub-registries in all partner states.
The commissioning of the sub-registry, the second in the region, follows the Kigali one which was launched on 10 August, this year. It will be followed by similar launches in Kampala, Nairobi and Bujumbura.
EACJ Registrar, Prof John Ruhangisa said that with the opening of these sub-registries, litigants will no longer be required to travel to Arusha to file their claims. "Instead, claims will be filed at an EACJ local sub-registry, which will handle the necessary transmission and communication details," he said.
The EACJ is one of the organs of the East African Community (EAC) established under Article 9 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community (EAC). Established in November 2001, the court's major responsibility is to ensure the adherence to law in the interpretation and application of and compliance with the EAC Treaty.
Prof Ruhangisa said so far 60 cases have been completed with 32 more pending whose sentencing is meant to be passed by the end of the year. He said that there have been delays largely due to the court shifting into its headquarters away from the Arusha International Conference Centre (AICC) and have had to postpone cases.
The Registrar said that apart from not having huge workloads, the court has strategies to curb corruption before it starts by paying employees well, have an electronic case management system and having a page on Facebook to better their customer care abilities.
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