10 of 2006, which is the scheme of service for clerks of court and the consolidation of nomenclature and/or re-designations.
The letter states that it was agreed at the meeting that the matters would be looked into and that the complaints should be submitted in writing, which was subsequently done and submitted on October 31 last year. "On January 27, 2007 at their meeting in Palapye, the clerks of court painfully resolved to engage an attorney to assist them in the matter, having found it difficult to solicit a response from the management," reads the correspondence.
They engaged Phadza Kgalemang of Kgalemang Sechele and Associates who, after instructions, wrote the Registrar and Master on February 6 this year, urging the management to implement the scheme of service without delay. It is further said that the Registrar and Master replied on March 12 to the effect that, among others, the delay was caused by the clerks of court themselves, who "did not agree to the implementation of the scheme of service as it is" and that his "office has been waiting for confirmation that it should start the scheme as approved".
"The registrar further intimated that, now that Kgalemang's letter confirmation to that effect, his office have started implementing the scheme of service. He also advised, through the attorney, that if the clerks wanted to start the review process of the scheme, his team was prepared to do so. "The clerks of court did present the draft review of the consolidated scheme of service, which embraced the old nomenclature to the office of the registrar and master on March 23, 2007. Now three months down the line, nothing has been done concerning the promises that the office of the registrar pledged to carry out. Not a single clerk of court has been redeployed appropriately as per the scheme of service.
The nomenclature which is discriminatory still in place and imposed on officers," reads the letter, which has been copied to all clerks of court and to Kgalemang Sechele and Associates law firm.
The aggrieved clerks say that taking into account the time the scheme of service has taken from February 6 last year to date, they feel the registrar should issue a circular savingram to all clerks of court and inform them as to what is happening to their scheme of service. "Much as the registrar and master has the prerogative of posting any officer in his department to anywhere in the country, that should also be done in consultation with the laid down procedures and policy documents, among them the scheme of service. Promotions are normal processes and activities that are always carried out in any organisation and therefore cannot be taken to be implementation of scheme of service in the true sense in this case in isolation of other pertinent issues to the scheme of service."
They disclosed that they are still clerks of court at C4/3 and C2 scales respectively, manning the stations of C1 grades, without any incentives whatsoever, contrary to the scheme of service, after 16 months of its release which they take to be a career guiding tool for everyone in the civil service. They outlined that the scheme of service succinctly states that the High Court/ Court of Appeal registries should be manned by a senior executive clerk of court at D2 scale, the regional magistrate station by executive clerk of court at D3 scale and a chief magistrate station would be manned by chief clerk of the court at D4.
Also the principal magistrate station should be manned by principal clerk of court at C1, the senior magistrate station by senior clerk of court at C2 and magistrate grade one and two at C4/3 band. "The scheme of service was recommended by the department and approved by DPSM as is, but we find it amazing that its implementation, wholly, becomes a mountain to climb. We trust that the registrar and master will see the damage this continuous delay in the implementation and reviewing of the scheme of service is causing and treat the issue with the urgency it deserves and cause the necessary action to be taken," the clerks' said in conclusion.
When reached for comment, the Master and Registrar of High Court, Godfrey Nthomiwa, said he had not seen the clerks' correspondence but, added "we are implementing and promoting them".
