The Judiciary in Kisii County has identified shortage of staff as one of the major causes for delays in the timely prosecution of children's matters in court.
Speaking during the commemoration of World Day Against Child Labour at Itierio grounds in Kisii South Sub County, Kisii Law Courts Senior Principal Magistrate Bernard Omwanza said some of the child matters drag in court due to the availability of few judicial officers. "The law demands that any children's matter should be processed within six months; unfortunately, the cases take longer than that because we are few and cannot manage the case workload," noted Omwanza.
The Judicial Officer also decried laxity by community members in providing evidence in court regarding child matters, saying it had contributed to the cases being withdrawn or dismissed in court. "Many people, especially at the grassroots level, do not come out and give evidence, and as such, the court entirely depends on the evidence given in court," said the Senior Principal Magistrate.
Omwanza urged the residents to come out and tender evidence in court whenever a crime has been committed, especially in matters concerning children, for timely justice.
