Judiciary gazettes new courts in Kipkelion to ease case backlog

Chief Justice Martha Koome. [File, Standard]

The Judiciary has gazetted the establishment of new courts in Kipkelion, Kericho county.

Speaking during the Kericho Law Courts Open Day, Chief Magistrate Charles Ombulutsa said that the court has been the only one serving the six sub-counties and beyond.

"We are now glad that the Chief Justice has gazetted the Kipkelion Law Courts to become a permanent court after we served there on a mobile basis once a week. Cases coming from Kipkelion West and Kipkelion East constituency will now be determined in Kipkelion Law Courts," he said.

Ombulutsa noted that many cases in Kericho are land disputes, often spanning two to three generations.

"Tracing such disputes becomes very difficult because witnesses who could have testified and other rightful parties in the case are long deceased. As a result, third-generation disputes are being handled in court, making them challenging to resolve," he said.

The Chief Magistrate pointed out other issues contributing to the case backlog, including missing police files, uncooperative witnesses, ill-prepared advocates, unprepared clients and failure by police to present suspects in remand to the court.

While acknowledging that the court could be blamed for 30 per cent of the backlog, he committed to clear the pending cases through various means, such as adopting alternative justice systems.

"Through alternative justice systems, parties can resolve their cases in a friendlier atmosphere outside the courts, either through mediation, conciliation, or court-annexed mediation," said Ombulutsa.