Parliament through the Legal Affairs Committee has scheduled public hearings on access to justice with a focus on legal representation by vulnerable people.

In a statement signed by clerk of parley Fiona Kalemba the public hearing will be held in all three regions of the country and will commence on 26th August with the southern region going first.

The public engagements follow round table discussions on the lack of legal representation by vulnerable people in the country.

This matter was brought to the attention of the Committee by the Legal Aid Bureau which indicated that the Bureau’s paralegal officers are not allowed to represent vulnerable
people who lack legal representation in the courts despite having the required legal qualifications.

The legal Aid bureau then proposed that there should be an ammendment of the Bureau’s Act to allow paralegal officers represent people in courts.

While some stakeholders were expressing a positive attitude towards the proposal but others had reservations on the matter.

The statement from Parliament indicates that for the northern region, the public hearing will be held on 2nd September where as the central region will have this meeting on 9th September .