The Professional Bailiffs Association (PBA) has implored the Ministry of Justice to intervene by dealing with banks and insurance firms that frustrate the process of judgment execution of public funds from debtors. During their annual conference held on Friday, the bailiffs told Justice Minister and Attorney General Johnston Busingye that some financial institutions clandestinely warn their clients when bailiffs ask for financial information from the institutions. According to the body’s president, Vedaste Habimana, court bailiffs may seek to know financials of judgment debtors before they can move in to attach their estates. “Sometimes people in banks and insurance firms warn their clients to withdraw their money upon reception of our request for financial statements of those individuals such that we find nothing on their accounts,” Habimana said. Busingye expressed great concern over the issue, calling upon financial institutions to play their part in the delivery of justice and to help get these debtors to pay, saying that everyone wins when judgment debtors pay up. “Court bailiffs have the mandate to have financial information about those who owe money to government,” said Busingye, adding that there will be con-sequences for those institutions that will be caught thwarting such efforts. Busingye commended the bailiffs for the strides made in executing judgments, adding that this was playing a major role in entrenching the rule of law in the country. “We have realised a great deal of people who willingly seek to pay their judgment debts whenever they lose court cases. This had never happened in the last 20 years,” he added.However, Busingye warned the bailiffs against malpractices while carrying out their duties, saying that some of them collude during the auction of debtors’ property which end up being bought by friends or relatives. He described these individuals as “wolves among sheep” urging the association to deal with them.“Be warned that even if the connivance is done at ten per cent, we’ll be obliged to act,” he said. There are about 500 professional court bailiffs in the country of which 27 have been faulted for malpractices and stopped from executing judgements while others are in jail, according to Habimana. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
