By: Madrama James
King News, Thursday, September 19th, 2024 Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs yesterday launched three years Strategic Plan aimed at “Ensuring Access to Justice and Rule of Law” in the country.
The event, held at Ministry’s premise, was graced by the attendance of First Vice President, Dr. Riak Machar, Chief Justice, and Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs along with key stakeholders from various sectors.
During the event, First Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar, emphasized the importance of timely implementation of the outlined priorities in the Strategic Plan before the scheduled 2026 general elections.
“I am happy that, you have lunched it now, after we have made a decision in government that, the transitional period be extended for another two years. This will give you a time, to implement your Strategic Plans. I am aware that, you have implemented a lot of it, but you still have many to implement. So, I want to call upon you, to maximize the time to implement. Complete implementation of this Strategic Plan within the period before we go for elections,” Riek said.
Meanwhile, the Ministry has been operating in accordance with provisions of the Ministry of Legal Affairs and Constitutional Development Organization Act, 2008.
The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Justice. Ruben Madol Arol featured his presentation on significant achievements his office has registered, such as the drafted constitutional-making process.
“I think, this is part of this Strategic Plan, I’d would like to say that, the Minister of Justice have already accomplished ninety-nine percent of the task. We finished and drafted the constitution making process, and now it is a law! We will also provide you with the copies it, the transitional justice mechanism, two of them which are the sole responsibility of the government, the truth reconciliation and reparations authority, I think all of us are aware, it was already passed, remaining to be submitted to the president,” Ruben declared.
For his part, Chief Justice Chan Reech Madut urged human rights defenders to support clients who are unable to pay their legal fees during this economic meltdown.
“Somebody cannot be denied access to justice simply because he or she doesn’t have fees to pay. Some advocates are there, I know they do their work as advocates because they’re to be paid something but if you look beyond the material aspect and see the humanity, there are some poor people who may not afford to pay what the advocate deserves. So, I urge colleagues, friends in the advocacy sector to pay attention to this. At this difficult time when people find it difficult to buy water and food. The fees maybe extremely difficult for some individuals to pay,” Chan urged.
However, the transition to a digital court system allows for more effective data management, increases accessibility, and simplifies some court producers.
According to Napoleon Adok Gai, Director General of the National Communication Authority, the National government needs to adopt a digital transformation system to boost productivity.
“So, I would like to use this platform to again rely my appeal in my capacity as a person entrusted with regulating the technology in the country, and also advising the government on the need to transform because digital transformations does not wait for us. It is moving, and if we don’t catch up, any of our lawyer that will show up in Arusha will not be able to read his own deposition,” Adok advised.
Sheila Ngatia, the Deputy Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), reaffirms the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs’ unwavering support for the realization of the launched plan.
“UNDP (United Nations Development Programs) stands ready to support the Ministry in implementing this strategic plan, through capacity building, technical assistance, fostering partnerships. We are committed to ensuring that the goals set forth in the Ministry’s strategic plan are realized and that this serves as a cornerstone of peace and development in the Country. Today, we celebrate the vision and leadership of the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, and we reaffirm our unwavering support for the continued journey towards a just peaceful, and prosperous South Sudan;” Sheila reaffirmed
According to information obtained by King News, this is the first time the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs has developed a Strategic Plan since its establishment in 2005.
The launch event concluded with a lively exchange of ideas on implementing the Strategic Plan and the importance of ongoing collaboration among key stakeholders.