Current crop of Ghanaian lawyers are not what Nkrumah envisaged – Prof Atuguba

Prof Raymond Atuguba is Dean of the University of Ghana School of Law

The Dean of the University of Ghana School of Law, Professor Raymond Atuguba, has asserted that Ghana’s first President, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, would not be happy with the current crop of lawyers in the country.

According to him, Ghanaian lawyers are now only interested in their parochial interest rather than using their skills to build a better Ghana, myjoyonline.com reports.

Professor Atuguba said that Dr Nkrumah looked out for lawyers, with multi-talents, who would help find the solutions to Ghana’s challenges, thereby driving the country’s development. However, he asserted that the current crop of lawyers in the country do not have this inclination.

"Dr Kwame Nkrumah wanted lawyers to use their skills to aid in the construction of the developmental state. Secondly, Dr Kwame Nkrumah had a vision of law that was multidisciplinary.

“So, in that speech, he delivered on January 4, 1962, he said that the law does not exist in a vacuum but exists in a social environment,” Atuguba is quoted to have said in an interview on JoyNews' AM Show on Thursday, April 18, 2024.

He added, “And so he wanted lawyers who were talented and multidisciplinary to aid the development and problem-solving backed by critical thinking but the Ghanaian lawyers have strayed away from these principles".

The Dean of the University of Ghana School of Law is reported to have made these comments while reacting to suggestions that there is a disconnect between the current crop of lawyers in the country and the foundational principles upon which Dr. Nkrumah sought to establish the legal profession.

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