CHIEF Justice Luke Malaba has challenged court officials, including magistrates, to desist from taking long to conclude cases, saying the practice dents the credibility of the country’s justice delivery system.
Malaba said the current situation where there was a huge backlog of unresolved cases, was unsustainable.
“The public is frustrated,” Malaba said during the launch of the Judicial Service Commission’s Fast Track Courts Training Programme held in Harare yesterday.
The training was attended by magistrates, prosecutors, investigators and other court officials.
“Stop postponing cases for weeks, months and years. That is not justice,” he said.
“Justice delayed is justice denied.”
Malaba said all institutions in the criminal justice system must act in unison towards a commitment to justice delivery.
“Where there is injustice, there is pain. And when we don’t deliver justice, we are prolonging the pain of the people. The sweetest justice is speedy justice. That is where the fast-track concept came from.”
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He said abuse of office and corruption on the part of court officials threatened the legitimacy of the justice system.
“Once the public loses confidence in the justice system, all of us become vulnerable. Nobody will recognise us.”
Malaba emphasised that fast-track courts are a mechanism to restore public trust and ensure justice is delivered within reasonable time-frames.
Prosecutor-General, Loice Matanda-Moyo, drawing on her unique experience as both a former judge and a career prosecutor, reinforced the importance of ethical conduct in the fast-track system.
“Every case must come to court trial-ready. Fast track does not mean shortcut, ethical practice is non-negotiable,” she said.
She encouraged court officials to become ambassadors of reform and accountability within their agencies, warning that the future of Zimbabwe’s justice system depends on their commitment.
