WINDHOEK – Newly appointed Minister of Justice, Dr Albert Kawana says President Hage Geingob has made the accessibility of land – urban and rural – among his top priorities.
According to Kawana, Geingob ordered him to investigate the current laws on land and either amend or replace them with laws that make land more accessible.
For this reason, Kawana said, the Department of Legal Drafting should be strengthened.
According to Kawana resources should be used to appoint more legal drafters. He said that should there be a need for extra resources he would be willing to personally take a pay cut of 50 percent to make this a reality.
“We will be required to draft a number of new laws, repeal unworkable laws and amend others. This will require the professional skills of our legal drafters. Therefore I direct that the Department of Legal Drafting be strengthened,” Kawana stressed.
In addition, he said, there must be adequate and efficient staff to render secretarial services to the Cabinet Committee on Legislation, which he will chair.
He called upon his staff to work hard as a team.
“I will demand performance, I will demand results and I will demand team work,” said Kawana who added: “If there are staff members here who do not see eye to eye in their departments or offices, from today on take that as a thing of the past.”
He told staff to take their differences to their private homes or to the streets because in the justice ministry “there is only one mandate and that is to serve the Namibian nation”.
“We have a duty to serve our nation without fail,” stressed the justice minister who added: “Failure is not an option and never will be.”
“From now on my name and my password is ‘teamwork’,” Kawana said.
He further told the gathering he wants to see the timely production of the ministry’s annual reports as well as that the Guardian’s Fund be audited by the auditor general.
He said legislation will be introduced in parliament to speed up the process, adding that while in terms of the State Finance Act the AG is entitled to audit the Fund, the new law will provide more guidelines.
According to Kawana he will coordinate with all stakeholders that a new law on speedy trials be introduced.
He said it is a matter of grave concern that some cases, especially at the lower courts, take very long to finalise. However steps are being taken to address the issue by the Judicial Service Commission under chairmanship of the chief justice.
One solution, Kawana said, is the introduction of small claims courts which could reduce the backlog.
He noted that community courts play an important role in the dispensing of justice, especially at community level, but said there is a need to engage traditional leaders to assess their effectiveness and to introduce reforms where necessary.
According to Kawana, his future plans also include assessing the effectiveness of the legal aid system and engaging Ombudsman John Walters on challenges his office face and ways to remedy the situation, as well as assessing the legal training that is offered by the Justice Training Centre.
In this regard Kawana said “we can learn from other Commonwealth countries on how professional training is conducted” and also engage the law faculty at the University of Namibia (Unam) with a view to strengthen the legal sector.
On a question from this reporter about the possibility that poor salaries and working conditions are the cause of some magistrates and prosecutors being caught with their hands in the cookie jar, he went on the defensive and said that low salaries should not be used as a reason for committing a crime.
He said criminal behaviour will not be tolerated – be it by a prosecutor, a magistrate, a judge or a minister.
At the same event, Deputy Minister of Justice Lidwina Shapwa endorsed the minister’s sentiments, adding that she would offer her services in any way needed. She also assured staff her office door would always be open, however not for abuse.
Attorney General Sacky Shangala told the gathering “my motto is hard work, hard work and hard work now”.
He said there is a tendency in government of business as usual.
That will not work with him, he said, as he plans to carry out his mandate with vigour.
If he finds anyone in his department not doing their part there will be dire consequences, Shangala warned.
He said the President expects of his team to bring results and vowed to get rid of dead wood.
“I don’t want to be fired,” he said and warned his staff “you will go before I do”.