The Ga South Municipal Assembly now has a court to make justice delivery more accessible. Located at Weija, the court is also to remove the barrier of distance which impacts on justice delivery, as well as reduces the time spent on delivering justice.
The assembly provided the facilities for the establishment of the district court, which is expected to bring justice on the doorstep of the people.
At the inauguration ceremony at Weija yesterday, Justice Naa Adoley Azu, Justice of the High Court, said a number of factors had militated against the effective operations of the courts and the administration of justice, a situation which had impacted and influenced the justice delivery process in the country.
She mentioned the lack of court houses, the deplorable state of the physical infrastructure housing some of the existing courts and the obsolete equipment and technology which had long been employed in delivering justice.
According to her, the Judicial Service had, for many years, experienced extreme shortage of accommodation (both court and residential) and inadequate supply of facilities to perform its functions.
She said even though it was the responsibility of the service to provide an enabling environment to create a legal and judicial system that promoted the rule of law, transparency and speedy administration of justice, the metropolitan, municipal and district assemblies (MMDAs) were responsible for providing court houses and residential accommodation for magistrates, something they had found difficult to comply with.
Justice Azu indicated that the Chief Justice had instituted measures to address the challenges confronting the service to improve efficiency and enrich the adjudication process.
She said those included massive court automation, computerisation and the use of state-of-the-art equipment in order to reconcile the justice sector with current technological developments and best practices in the administration of justice.
She said the creation and the inauguration of the Weija District Court formed part of the prioritised reform initiatives of the service and commended the assembly for providing the facilities for the establishment of the court.
She reminded judges and other officials manning the courts to exhibit a high level of professionalism in the discharge of their duties to protect and maintain the good image of the Judicial Service and avoid acts that would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.
The Ga South Municipal Chief Executive, Mr Jerry Akwei Thompson, said the opening of the court in the municipality was timely and appropriate because of the role it was expected to play in checking the numerous disputes, the menace of lands guards, illegal sand winning, noise making and the general lack of discipline and respect for environmental sanitation in the municipality.
He said due to misconceptions about the role of the MMDAs, some people did not appreciate what they were offered and asked the people to study the relevant provisions in their legislation and abide by those rules, so that should they breach any of the provisions and brought before the court, they would not accuse the assembly of witch hunting.
He advised traditional authorities and the people trying to cause mayhem in the communities because of some disagreements over chieftaincy issues to avail themselves of the court to settle issues, instead of resorting to violence, which sometimes resulted in loss of lives and property.
Mr Thompson urged the Judiciary to deal drastically with people such as land guards who were becoming a major threat to peace in the municipality and advised people who used the services of land guards to desist from those activities, since those who would be caught would not be spared.
