Danisa Masuku in Tsholotsho
THE Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has launched the stakeholder engagement drive for the Integrated Electronic Case Management System (IECMS) in Tsholotsho, a move aimed at digitising courts in rural areas.
The launch was held on Wednesday at Tsholotsho Magistrates Court. This follows the launch of the programme in other provinces.
Secretary of the JSC, Dr Walter Chikwana, took time to unpack the IECMS, which will be officially operationalised on 1 January next year.
Dr Chikwana said the IECMS is the digitisation of all courts whereby courts in Zimbabwe are going paperless.
He said this means that instead of litigants filing cases physically at the court, they can now do so in the comfort of their homes, offices, churches and businesses.
“The IECMS will improve access to justice. Litigants will not need to travel long distances to file their papers. They can file from anywhere where there will be internet service using their mobile phones or computers,” said Dr Chikwana.
He said the system will also reduce backlog and curb corruption.
The stakeholders’ meeting was graced by various Government departments, local leaders, service chiefs, members of the church, the business community and members of the local community from various villages.
Chief Siphoso said the programme was welcome development.
“We’re happy that the JSC has remembered us in the rural areas. This system will help our people.
The programme is strategic in the sense that in some instances the victim is not supposed to meet up with the accused as that would perpetuate trauma,” he said.
One of the villagers, Ms Sithabile Ncube from Jimajila area said she was happy about the development.
“We used to travel for many kilometres to the court. Now we’re told we can file at home using a phone. This is good for us,” she said.
Dr Chikwana, however, said they are aware of the challenges of poor electricity and poor internet connectivity in rural areas like Tsholotsho.
To mitigate the challenge, Dr Chikwana said the Commission has put in place measures to ensure the system works, including the installation of solar power.
