Judges,magistrates want better service conditions - Justice Atuguba
Judges and magistrates in the country have called for better conditions of service in recognition of the exacting and onerous nature of their work.
Advertisement
“The sheer volume of litigation, the varied complex and legal issues involved in every case and the range of research these entail are probably unknown to the public. Working under such conditions is particularly stressful, against a background of poor remuneration and other working conditions,’’ a Supreme Court judge, Mr Justice William Atuguba, stated at the opening of the 36th Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Association of Magistrates and Judges, Ghana (AMJG) in Accra yesterday.
The two-day event is on the theme: “Restoring the image of the Judiciary” and is being attended by the Chief Justice, Mrs Justice Georgina Theodora Wood, members of the Judicial Council and judges across the country.
Mr Justice Atuguba’s call comes in the wake of an announcement by the AMJG that its negotiations with the government over the salaries of circuit court judges and magistrates have hit a snag.
Making a case for the adjudicators, Mr Justice Atuguba said judges played a crucial role in the country and, therefore, “their conditions of service should not be considered in common with any generalised policy on pay structure’’.
He made reference to a quote by a former President of the Ghana Bar Association (GBA), Mr Peter Ala Adjetey, who described conditions of service of judges in the country as “simply a disgrace’’ and, therefore, called for the restoration of certain allowances and other compensation packages for members of the Bench.
“I call for the restoration of an enhanced leave allowance, a substantial entertainment allowance and a handsome allowance to compensate for the loss of private professional practice as is enjoyed by doctors, teachers, etc.,’’ he said.
Click to listen to Justice William Atuguba here
{mp3}Judges_demand_better_conditions_of_service{/mp3}
Circuit court judges and magistrates
Speaking on the negotiations with the government, the President of the AMJG, Mr Justice Dennis Dominic Adjei, was optimistic that the government and the association would reach an agreement very soon.
“We went to the Flagstaff House, we negotiated and it was successful, until last week when minor infractions came up. Hopefully, they will be addressed,’’ he said in his welcome address at the AGM.
Threat of strike
Although Mr Justice Adjei failed to mention what had caused the hold up in negotiations or any timelines for the government and the AMJG to reach an agreement, he assured the members that negotiations would eventually yield positive fruits.
Negotiations between the government and the AMJG became necessary following threats by circuit court judges and magistrates last week Tuesday to embark on a strike from September 30, 2016 as a result of the government’s failure to fully implement the group’s conditions of service as approved in 2011.
The judges of the lower bench are demanding, among other things, a 10 per cent salary increment and other allowances.
“Don’t forget JUSAG”
Apart from the judges and magistrates, the Judicial Service Staff Association (JUSAG) has also called on the Judicial Service and the government to take a second look at the conditions of service of court clerks, registrars and other frontline workers of the Judicial Service.
According to Mr Justice Atuguba, good conditions of service for all workers under the Judicial Service would go a long way to address the issue of corruption in the service.
“We have to look at all the factors that lead to corruption in the service. If you have a registrar whose take-home pay is below GHc1,000 and nothing is said about it, the officer will be tempted to engage in corruption,’’ he said.
“Goro boys’’
With regard to corruption in the Judiciary, Mr Justice Atuguba challenged judges and other officials of the Judicial Service not to fall prey to the activities of middlemen who sought to link them to people seeking to influence justice delivery.
“You must be guarded against judicial “goro boys” from within or without. We must resort to judicial fumigation against corruption by reporting people who try to bribe judges to the law enforcement agencies,’’ he added.
For his part, the President of the GBA. Mr Benson Nutsukpui, urged judges and lawyers to further improve their working relationship to promote the independence of the Judiciary, adding: “We must cooperate to restore and protect the independence of the Judiciary.’’