The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Nobert Mao (pictured) protested the blanket ban on travels abroad, saying this will affect legal presentation of Uganda internationally.
Mao’s protest followed budget cuts inflicted on the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs as part of the austerity measures undertaken by Government to curb on expenditure, a move Mao says can’t be imposed totally without taking into consideration of uniqueness of some public entities like the Attorney General’s chambers that is constitutionally mandated to represent Government both locally and internationally.
“Even the blanket ban on foreign travels shouldn’t apply to the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. What do you do when Uganda has been sued in an international country you have to send lawyers there and many times, the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General have expressed commitment to appear in person. So we are hopeful that you will strongly advocate for these additional resources in the budget because a supplementary budget takes long,” remarked Mao.
His remarks saw some MPs remind him that State House is among the top spenders in Government, assertions Mao protested arguing that State House has taken measures to reduce on its expenditure to the extent that there is no longer lunch provided as was the case before, and the Ministry of Justice has taken same measures and urged Parliament to follow suit.
He said: “I want to assure you that the President’s convoy has been cut, they are no longer 50vehicles, they have been cut. Even if you go to State House, the food budget has been cut down, there was a time when there was no lunch but packed lunch. I think we should all do our part, after all there is no punishment in doing the right thing. Of course I expect a new car but it won’t be 5000 cc. Those who want 5000 cc should buy it using their own money, I don’t think wait to enter government for you to exercise your taste in new cars.”
In the 2023/2024 national budget, the Ministry of Justice has been allocated Shs150.373Bn, of which Shs10.904Bn is for wages, Shs119.469 non-wage and Shs20Bn for development.
However, Robert Kasande, Permanent Secretary Ministry of Justice says the allocated funds are a drop in the ocean compared to the budgetary needs of the Ministry, citing the Shs130Bn required to increase the Ministry’s presence from 7 state attorney offices to 13 offices, so as to meet the growth need of the Judiciary that has opened several high court circuits across the country, yet this isn’t the case with the Attorney General’s chambers.
Kasande said, “In as far as representing Government in courts of law is concerned, due to numbers of staff we have and their motivation, where the Judiciary has continued to open court circuits all over the country, they have recruited more judicial officers, they have enhanced their salaries, that hasn’t been the case on our case. We have regional offices which cover lots of districts yet in some incidences and we have one vehicle and the Attorneys in those offices aren’t adequate.”
Minister Mao appealed for more funding to the Ministry of Justice to second lawyers to some international bodies like the African Union, United Nations, United Nations Human Rights to defend and represent interests of Uganda.
“We need a lawyer in Geneva, many times we have been bashed whenever human rights issues are being discussed, because we don’t have somebody well informed enough to let the international community know that we are actually fully complying with our obligations. We only have one lawyer in New York and that isn’t enough, the UN is extremely busy. They will be under the supervision of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but they have to be seconded by the Attorney General,” said Mao.
