Some University of Guyana (UG) law students remain concerned over the possibility of gaining automatic entry into the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS), despite assurances by Attorney General Anil Nandlall that the longstanding arrangement will continue.
One of those students is president of the UG Law Society (UGLS) Patrice Wishart, who expressed hope that the issue would be resolved soon.
Attorney General Anil Nandlall recently met with the law students and assured them that automatic entry into HWLS will continue for the top 25 UG law students, while discussions ensue at the level of Caricom to cover a wide-ranging review of legal education in the region.
However, despite these assurances, many students’ concerns are not abated. “He basically said that it is expected that the agreement of the automatic 25 and the 10 non-nationals will continue.
Persons in the meeting were hoping for something more concrete but he could not say definitively that the agreement will stand the test of time,” Wishart said.
Emphasising that he could not speak for the entire law student body, Wishart said that personally he was worried. “Given the fact that the agreement is in limbo, we tend to get worried from time to time. From the meeting with the Attorney General, persons came away with different feelings; I can say that for sure,” he said.
He went on, “I personally don’t feel overly optimistic at the time. I feel the same way now as when the issue came up last year March.”
Wishart further said Nandlall indicated that he will be meeting officials in Grenada on February 5 to further discuss Guyana’s situation and to find any possible suggestions or solutions. Nandlall promised the law students that he will meet with them once more following his meeting in Grenada and Wishart expressed hope that the Attorney General with return with positive news.
“Until then, right now things more or less remain the same,” the UGLS president said.
Meanwhile, if the deal between the two universities falls through, the law students were informed of possible alternate options including the Eugene Dupoch Law School in the Bahamas.
However, Wishart said, the school’s tuition is much more expensive that than of the HWLS and is also not as accessible as Trinidad and Tobago. Further, he said, Nandlall indicated that a local law school was “not inconceivable.”
According to Nandlall, there is currently a stalemate between the University of the West Indies (UWI) and UG in relation to the continuation of the two-decade collaborative arrangement.
Further, Nandlall said that UG presented proposals for consideration by UWI and it is expected that the two institutes will arrive at “a mutually acceptable solution.” It is hoped that that agreement would be taken to the CLE for its approval, the Ministry of Legal Affairs said.
