Judiciary support staff demand housing allowances

Justice delivery came to a standstill in Blantyre on Wednesday morning after Judiciary support staff downed their tools and engaged their bosses in a meeting where they demanded housing allowances.

The support staff included those from the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal, the High Court’s Blantyre Registry and High Court Commercial Division, Blantyre, Limbe and Midima magistrates’ courts.

Business came to a halt in the morning hours of Wednesday and lawyers and others who had cases were seen waiting in vain. Some were told to go back as the junior workers were in a meeting with registrar Joseph Chigona and other senior staff.

The registrar convinced the support staff, who had threatened a strike, to return to work as his administration promised to take the matter up with the Judiciary’s conditions of service committee.

The aggrieved support staff returned to work later in the afternoon on the understanding that their grievances would be resolved with necessary speed.

What sparked the tension is a revelation in our sister newspaper, Weekend Nation, last Saturday that judges and magistrates are out of the consolidated perks group of public servants into a category that ‘must’ get government housing or an allowance where houses are not available.

One irate support staff said: “We questioned why the judges and the magistrates should leave us behind on this. We always move together, but we are surprised our bosses have been specially considered and nothing is said about us.

“We don’t want a scenario such as the one during the administration of former president the late Bingu wa Mutharika where we went on strike for months to press for what we were entitled to.”

The Judiciary staffer said they expected the same consideration on housing to trickle down to them, arguing judges and the support staff have fought other battles together and won them together and there was no justification to be sidelined on housing this time around.

The support staff, who attended the Wednesday meeting, said an assurance was made by the registrar that they would take up the matter with the committee chaired by Supreme Court of Appeal Judge Andrew Nyirenda.

In an interview yesterday, Chigona confirmed meeting the aggrieved staff, explaining that he promised them that the matter would be referred to the committee.

Said Chigona: “We have received their concerns and through the committee, we will sit down to chart the way forward.”

The Nation crew that went to the Supreme Court, the High Court and the magistrate court premises at Chichiri in Blantyre witnessed the temporary closure of the courts Wednesday morning and business only resumed in the afternoon.

In the Weekend Nation story, Treasury spokesperson Nations Msowoya painted a picture that the consideration of housing or an allowance where houses are not available for judges and magistrates is not immediately implementable.

Msowoya said they were still looking at the proposal and discussing the implementation plan with the Judiciary.