My Lord, the Chief Justice, My Lords and Lady Justices of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania,

Transcription

1 SPEECH DELIVERED BY HON. GEORGE M. MASAJU ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA AT THE OCCASION OF THE ADMISSION CEREMONY OF ADVOCATES TO THE BAR ON THE 15 TH OF DECEMBER 2015, AT KARIMJEE HALL DAR ES SALAAM My Lord, the Chief Justice, My Lords and Lady Justices of the Court of Appeal of Tanzania, My Lord, Principal Judge, My Lords and Lady Judges of the High Court, The Director of Public Prosecutions, My Lords and Lady retired Justices and Judges, Members of the Diplomatic Corps present, The President of the Tanganyika Law Society, Your Honour Registrars and Magistrates, Members of the Tanganyika Law Society Learned Members of the Legal Profession, Distinguished Guests, Good morning to everyone I feel greatly honoured to be giving the opening speech to mark this auspicious occasion of admission of new advocates, my new colleagues to the bar. It is indeed a privilege for me, for the first time, to address such an assembly in my capacity as the newly appointed Attorney General of the United Republic of Tanzania. My Lords, Lady Justices, distinguished guests. Becoming an advocate is a very special and privileged moment in the life of any lawyer. Let me begin by sincerely congratulating the newly admitted advocates and welcome them to a noble profession with a great history. A profession which carries with it, great duties, rights involving heavy obligations and much responsibility. Allow me also to extend my appreciation and congratulations to the families, relatives, friends and teachers of the newly admitted advocates for their love, support and guidance during the long periods and hours of study. As the Head of the bar, I have been reliably informed that there are two groups of lawyers who will be called to the bar today. The first group is that of the Law graduates who graduated their 1

2 Bachelor of Laws Degree Course prior to the enactment of the Law School of Tanzania Act, 2007 and had to appear for an interview before the Counsel for Legal Education, in fulfilment of bar enrolment requirements. The second category is that of lawyers who pursued a postgraduate course at the Law School of Tanzania, pursuant to the provisions of the Law School of Tanzania Act and duly passed their legal practice examinations, at the school. It has been a long academic process but an important one, which our newly admitted advocates had to go through, in order to be imparted with knowledge, skills and values to serve the public competently and ethically. So today, the newly admitted advocates, should not only celebrate their achievements but also those of their loved ones, the good people who sacrificed to get you to this moment, the doubters who thought you would never make it and the great heroes who had faith in you, when you did not have faith in yourself. My Lords, Lady Justices, newly admitted advocates. I have the privilege, of being among the first people to address you, after your being called to the bar. In this regard, I would like to first and foremost, talk to you about what it means to become an advocate and how to be engaged as one, either in your private capacity or otherwise. Indeed, after your enrolment to the bar, most of you will start looking for new jobs, especially in the public service. Whether you get to be employed in the public or private sector is entirely your own choice. But for those who are already employed in the public sector or aspire to be employed there, you should make sure that you observe the practising rules and procedures governing advocates who serve in public service institutions. These require such advocates to refrain from practising as private advocates while still serving in Public service, in order to avoid any conflict of interest. I would like to seriously advise you that, whether you will do it advertently or inadvertently, it will be against the rules and regulations and such actions can attract very strong disciplinary measures to be taken against the relevant lawyer. Otherwise, I would advise you to choose between practising as a private advocate, in which case, the sky will be the limit for you or choosing to practise and render legal services to the public service institutions. On a different note, I strongly encourage all of you, who shall proceed as private advocates, to be ready and willing to work 2

3 in any part of the country, as you consider ways of creating self employment. Please note that self employment is one of the priorities of the Government. Having passed your examinations well and being prepared to lead your destiny, you should therefore, be ready to open up Law Firms and offices in both urban and rural areas rather than concentrating in big cities alone. That is how, you will be able to take your services closer to the people and make yourselves more viable, as you get self employed. My Lords, Lady Justices, newly admitted advocates. As the Head of the bar, let me also advise you on what it means to be an advocate. By the time you are called to the bar, you have attended a number of graduation ceremonies. This time around, you have become advocates, and advocates are different. They are not simply like other professionals. In Tanzania, advocates are mainly regulated by the Advocates Act, Cap 341 of the laws of Tanzania, the Tanganyika Law Society Act as well as Rules of Professional Conduct and Etiquette of the Tanganyika Law society. Under the Advocates Act, an advocate is defined as any person whose name is duly entered as an advocate upon the Roll. Once you have been registered in accordance with the law, you are required to discharge your duties in an ethical manner,short of which a complaint can be filed against you under the Act. Remember that you are committed to the rule a law in a democratic society, where advocates are also committed to an independent Bar and an independent Judiciary. An independent and vibrant legal profession is also essential for the proper functioning of the administration of justice. How you perform your duties as an advocate, matters to your clients and society at large. Always remember that, what may be a simple and relatively unimportant case or transaction to you is likely to be extremely important to your client. You have a duty of loyalty and confidentiality to all your clients. It is these aspects of loyalty and confidentiality, which distinguish you from those who have chosen to pursue other professions and occupations. Similarly, by being enrolled and admitted to the Bar, you become officers of the Courts, and have a duty to the fair and effective administration of justice. Thus you have a duty to treat our courts, your adversaries and indeed all people with whom you come into contact in your professional dealings with fairness, courtesy, respect and civility. I must well emphasize that, one of the fundamental responsibilities of counsel is to maintain, the highest professional standards of integrity and competence at all times. 3

4 My Lords, Lady Justices, newly admitted advocates. We are also set apart in our profession due to our strong devotion to public service. In our profession, public service is not an option, it is a professional responsibility. It has always been one of the hallmarks of our profession and it remains one of the hallmarks of our profession today. As the Attorney General of the United Republic of Tanzania, public access to justice, is one of my top priorities and it continues to be the focus of the Attorney General`s Chambers. You must always remember that, as you are privileged to be lawyers and advocates, there are many others in our society who are less privileged than you are, and have no access to legal services, because of ignorance or poverty. You therefore have significant role to play in promoting access to justice for all, through legal aid, pro bono work, etc. I am aware that, as part of your membership to the Tanganyika Law Society, you will be required to provide legal aid services to the indigents as part of your obligations, under the Legal Aid (Criminal Proceedings) Act, however, you also have a moral obligation to assist the poor when they seek justice in the course of your career, since we are all potential victims of poverty or ignorance. We cannot choose our fate. In this regard, I would like to advise you, on what King David of Israel had to say on the importance of taking care of the poor, in his Psalms 41:1-3; 1. BLESSED is he who considers the poor; The LORD will deliver him in time of trouble. 2. The LORD will preserve him and keep him alive, And he will be blessed on the earth: You will not deliver him to the will of his enemies. 3. The LORD will strengthen him on his bed of illness; You will sustain him on his sickbed. So please, consider the poor and you will always be blessed accordingly by the Lord. Distinguished guests, newly admitted advocates. I urge you not to refrain from further learning, always be a student, be disciplined and honest. Self discipline should inform your work, habits and emotions. In the face of provocation you 4

5 should observe rules of conduct for lawyers. Adjust to change and be dynamic, remember we live in the 21 st century, in a technological world. You should be prepared to handle diverse legal matters and emerging issues from not only the surrounding society that you are in but also from the technological world of internet and what have you. So you should always find ways of being proactive and creative in order to cope with the pace and efficiency typical of the 21 st century. I can go on but today is a day for you to reflect back on your chosen career path and think of the ways in which you can apply your legal knowledge and skills to the benefit of yourselves, the society and the nation at large. Remember, respect and success can only be earned through hard work and adherence to strong ethical and professional values. It is not about the grandeur of wearing the gowns. My Lord the Chief Justice, Lady Justices, newly admitted advocates, distinguished guests. In the name of the Attorney General s Chambers and in my personal capacity, I extend to all new advocates, my warmest congratulations and wish them a long and successful career. Your future is indeed very bright. In the same vein, I wish you all present here God s blessings and a Prosperous New Year, Thank you for your kind attention. 5