GITEGA July 28th (ABP) – The Minister of Justice, Mrs. Jeanine Nibizi, announces that her priorities in the judicial administration are to provide fair justice to litigants, she said on Friday July 24, 2020, to the outcome of a meeting that it held, behind closed doors, in the premises of Helena Hôtel of Gitega (central Burundi), for officials of the said ministry, the officials of the courts and tribunals as well as those of parquet floors at all levels.
Recently appointed head of that ministry, Mrs. Nibizi said the meeting was aimed at making contact with key personnel in order to create a climate of understanding in the workplace.
To that end, the Minister of Justice has indicated that she will get involved in improving the image of justice, both inside and outside the country. That renewed confidence will help boost the country’s socio-political development, she said.
To get there, she has said she will wage a merciless fight against corruption and patronage. The establishment of local justice will also be her priority so that trials are delivered in real time, she underlined.
Minister Nibizi will spare no effort to reduce the size of the prison people because, she noted, there are people languishing in prisons without their cases being decided.
“These people cannot benefit from a presidential pardon or parole,” she said, adding that she gave judges two months to empty the pending cases.
In the same way, she has indicated that she will initiate the payment of a fine as an alternative to imprisonment.
Minister Nibizi also indicated that she is considering reducing the state’s resources for the operation of prisons by initiating activities that generate profits in prisons. She cited in particular the performance by sentenced prisoners of public service.
“You can’t feed fit people since they don’t produce. It is an abusive expenditure “, regretted Minister Nibizi.
Concerning the trials concerning a civil case, the Minister of Justice has indicated that she has recommended the involvement of judges so that such trials are no longer dilatory. “This creates social unrest and the loss of confidence of litigants in the courts,” she explained.
In addition, Minister Nibizi revealed that she recommends building the capacities of lower court judges, updating the laws, as well as the careful monitoring of trials involving the State and of cases relating to land titles.