Judiciary to acquire aircraft

By Allan Kisia

NAIROBI, KENYA: The Judiciary is in the process of acquiring a light plane to facilitate movement of judges and magistrates to remote areas.

The Budget and Appropriations Committee consequently asked the Judiciary to furnish it with detailed information on the plan to purchase aircraft.

The Committee, chaired by Mbeere South MP Mutava Musyimi, asked Chief Registrar Gladys Shollei to justify the judiciary’s need for the aircraft.

The brief should contain the cost benefit analysis of the explaining how the purchase of the aircraft will benefit the judiciary in its vision of delivering justice to the people of Kenya.

Shollei had appeared before the committee budget for the scrutiny of the 2013-2014 budget estimates.

The judiciary proposes to spend Sh24.1 billion of which Sh17.1 billion will be used for recurrent expenditure and Sh7 billion for development.

Among other things, the judiciary has requested Sh300 million to buy a fixed wing airplane to enable it to take its services to far flung areas of the country.

The committee ordered Shollei to deliver the brief by yesterday and it on the basis of the brief that the committee will make a determination on whether to approve the vote or reject the proposal.

Shollei told the committee they had opted to purchase the plane because the judiciary spends as much money in hiring the services of aircraft operators annually because it costs up to US$1,500 to hire a plane per hour.

She agreed with the committee’s acquiring aircrafts is not part of their core mandate but revealed that they had agreed to let the Kenya Wildlife Service to run the plane on their behalf.

Kitutu Chache South MP Richard Onyonka told the chief registrar that the logic to purchase the airplane is worrying because every department of the government could capitalise on the proposal to justify the need for an aircraft.

He proposed that CCTV and teleconferencing facilities should be installed in the courts to allow judicial officers to communicate effectively

Seme MP James Nyikal proposed a pool of air service should be established in the public service to cut on the costs accrued of either buying or hiring.