Opposition fails in bid to “block” Law School

Jan 26, 2017 News

The opposition Peoples Progressive Party (PPP) has attempted to block the establishment of the JOF Haynes Law School of the Americas that is to be located here. Attorney General Basil Williams made this disclosure at a press conference at the Ministry of Legal Affairs yesterday.
Williams said former Attorney General and PPP Member of Parliament Anil Nandlall had written to the Council of Legal Education (CLE) seeking to prevent the establishment of the Law School in Guyana. He said that attempt was futile since the school has the blessings of two reputable legal bodies, the CLE and the Law College of Americas (LCA) and will be going ahead as planned.
Williams opined that the opposition has no interest in the well being of the Law Graduates and the hardship they endured to enter the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS). He called the attempt “malicious and corrosive” and emphasised that such attempts cannot stop an idea whose time has come.
The AG said that he was made aware of this attempt when he was contacted by CLE member and Trinidadian Attorney Reginald Armour SC.
Williams said that the matter will be addressed when he attends the meeting of the Executive Committee to be held in Jamaica, tomorrow and Saturday. The aim of the visit is to further discuss the establishment of the law school, and according to Williams, to sensitize the Jamaican public about the impending establishment and how it will work.
The AG said he was unsure what Nandlall’s aim was, and in fact the CLE had previously given permission to the Guyana government for the establishment of a law school but this was never done.
The AG said what is most bizarre is that this permission was given during the time when the PPP/C was in office. Williams blamed the PPP/C for the plethora of problems that has bedeviled the Law programme at the University of Guyana. He claimed that contributions to HWLS were stopped by the PPP/C since 2002 and this has contributed to only twenty-five Law graduates per year being allowed to enter that institution from Guyana.
He noted that the situation couldn’t continue since the number of students graduating from the law programme at the University of Guyana was increasing yearly. This would have meant that most graduates would not have had the opportunity to have that specialized training. On top of that, fees were substantially increased at HWLS and many graduates could not afford that cost, which meant they could not attend.
Williams said had it not been for his persistence, the JOF Haynes Law School would not have been close to reality. This, he stressed, will ensure the exposure to quality training of Guyana’s aspiring Attorneys in a greater number. He concluded this can only serve the country well for the future. The JOF Haynes Law School of the Americas will accept graduates from the Caribbean and the Americas.

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