Congrats to Jagan Jr. II upon Passing NY Bar and Commitment to Guyana

Dec 16, 2012 Letters

Dear Editor,
This is in reference to “Jagan II receives money for a non-existent qualification” (KN Dec 12). I don’t think Dr. Cheddi Jagan Jr. II was being paid for his qualification per se or for being a lawyer but for various services rendered.
I was impressed by several pieces Jagan penned last year demonstrating competence in the legal sphere as well as in the social sciences. The fact that Dr. Jagan is not admitted to the Guyana bar or NY bar does not mean he is not qualified to render opinions or offer advice to the government or to clients on relevant issues. And the fact that he is not a lawyer does not mean he cannot make a valuable contribution to the nation.
While the term Esq. is traditionally appended to an office of a lawyer (or lawyers) licensed to practice law, people not practicing law can also use it.  Dr. Jagan has passed the NY bar exam which is a tough exam.  I know several individuals who took the exam and failed. We should be proud that he has passed the bar. Incidentally, Dr. Ravi Dev also has a Juris Doctor and passed the bar exam at first sitting and was called to the bar in the US. Very few individuals have been denied the license to practice law after they passed the exam. It is a mere formality to be called to the bar after passing the exam.
Unlike the writer, I will not describe Cheddi Jagan Jr. as a fat cat.
He is a young kid wanting to help his former homeland and he should be encouraged.  There are so many Guyanese who are qualified in various spheres of endeavours but have not rendered any service to their nation. And although Dr. Jagan is not a (qualified) lawyer, he would still have been earning a lot of money in the US conducting legal research for law offices has he chosen that option – certainly a lot more than the US $2.5K earned monthly in Guyana.
It does not appear that the young Jagan has not tried to deceive the public about his legal qualifications. In fact, the young Jagan admitted that he is not licensed to practice law in any jurisdiction long before KN published the list of names of highly paid individuals working for the state.  Dr. Jagan ought to be congratulated for passing the exam and committing himself in service to Guyana.
Vishnu Bisram