Judicial Service Commission: No money for building cells

Women, men and children are still sharing holding cells in courts across the country after Sh1.5 billion was slashed from the development budget of the judiciary. The funds were then channeled to the counties.

The budget was slashed in June this year by the National Assembly.

Tuesday, the Court Users Committee at Kisumu's Winam Court raised the concern about lack of holding cells for women and children before Judicial Service Commission (JSC) officials.

Reacting to the concern, JSC Chair Emily Ominde said they received similar sentiments across the country, and incorporated construction of holding cells in the 2015-16 financial year budget.

"Every year we have a common issue for all courts. Last year, we agreed to build separate cells for women, men and children. Unfortunately our development budget was slashed by Sh1.5 billion," she said.