Lack of accommodation has forced Kapiri Mposhi Urban Local Court to start conducting court sessions from a rented house.
The Court has relocated to the private house from a disused Council Tavern which has served as a local court for some time now while awaiting completion of construction a local court Annex delayed for over five years now.
The Council Tavern, which has no toilets and running water , has now become inhabitable for court operations and proceedings.
The development has raised concern among litigants and authorities in the district as the house is too small to be used as a court.
Kapiri Mposhi Central Ward Councilor, Ronald Simwanza has since appealed to the government to fund the completion of construction of the Local Court building initiated in 2013.
Mr Simwanza noted that renting of private accommodation at K 4500 for the local court is a drain on government resources which could be channelled to other need areas such as provision of health care.
” Our people are suffering the house were the sessions are being held now can only accommodate about seven people we want to appeal to government to complete construction of the local court Annex as this will help in delivery of justice,” Mr Simwanza said.
Construction of the new Local Court building at the cost of about a million kwacha stalled over five years ago after the contractor, Avotech Construction abandoned the project at 70 percent complete.
And Kapiri Mposhi District Commissioner, Francis Hasalama has assured residents that government will ensure the new local court building is completed.
” It is not conducive to hold cases in this environment but as district administration we will engage necessary offices to finish the court as you know this project started along time ago in 2013 so we need also to find out why it has taken so long to be completed,” Mr Hasalama.
He noted that the relocation of the court to a private house in Lukanda Plots has resulted in the decline of people seeking legal services from the court.
And local court litigants such as Catherine Chizu have complained of lack of toilets for litigants seeking legal services.
Chizu lamented that the toilets at the facility are inside the house and restricted to court staff.
Hon Kakubo take action this is your constituency
I suspect soon there will be a need to rent mobile toilets at the cost of completing the 70 percent completed courthouse. Pa Zed ni pandale zoona.