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The Court Superintendent Office in New Amsterdam, East-Berbice- Corentyne (Region Six) was on Friday commissioned by Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall.
The facility which is located in the Central Police Station, New Amsterdam was renovated at a cost of $6.3 million and is supported by the Criminal Justice System (CJS) programme which is funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
The Attorney General said Government is working to ensure that the country’s prosecutorial arm is equipped with the infrastructure and personnel it needs to enhance the justice system.
Nandlall said work is being done to create a modern criminal justice system while noting that the establishment of the facility is among several initiatives which the Government intends to develop during its tenure.
“This initiative will go a far way in improving the level of prosecutorial service at the level of the magistrates’ court level. At the high court before the judge and jury, you have the State proving a prosecutor who is a full trained lawyer. We can’t replicate that across the country at the magistrates’ court. So, what we are doing is adding LLB graduates, to aid and assist the police prosecutors,” he said.
The Attorney General said it would be ideal to have qualified lawyers at every magistrates’ court to prosecute offences but that is not a realistic objective. Thus far, 60 Expressions of Interest have been received from persons who have a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree.
“When you translate that to magistrates’ court in the country, it means that we already have one person assigned to every magistrate court to accompany the police prosecutor,” the Attorney General said.
Nandlall disclosed that the Government will be providing opportunities for persons interested in pursuing an LLB programme to augment the police prosecutorial arm. He said a consultant will be hired to design the syllabus for the prosecutorial programme.
Further, steps have already been taken to engage the University of Guyana where the lectures will be held, and upon completion, persons will obtain a certificate that would be recognised locally and overseas.
