The justice sector cannot successfully discharge its mandate if all affiliated institutions do not plan and work together to achieve a common goal, Johnson Busingye has said. The Justice Minister and Attorney-General was addressing top leaders from the justice sector during a two-day retreat in Rubavu District yesterday. The retreat, which ended yesterday, aimed at evaluating the activities of the Judiciary but, most importantly, plan its role as the pillar for the achievement of the country’s development agenda. Busingye said the institutions cannot succeed while working in isolation saying that it is a whole chain of activities where any form of miscommunication paralyses the entire sector. He said the justice sector has a bigger role to play to help the country achieve development blueprints such as Vision 2020, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well as becoming an upper middle income country by 2035 and high income country by 2050. “It is paramount that we plan as a sector, allocate resources as a sector, monitor and evaluate our activities as a sector, succeed as a sector and where we stumble, face it together and look for remedies as a sector. This is not only a smart choice, it is a success imperative,” the minister told the participants. Busingye said the retreat would provide political orientation, which technical teams will translate into strategies and actionable plans. He said, currently, the justice sector is planning for a radically different generation and the country is positively changing faster thanks to various aspects such as globalisation, the fourth industrial revolution, policies on urbanisation, education, health, agriculture, youth, environment protection, information communication technology, among others. “The requirements for justice, rule of law, safety and security, unity, correction services, criminal investigations and prosecutions are increasingly coming under pressure to adapt to the whole new level of public expectation,” Busingye said. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
