Six law graduates from Makerere University who are among the hundreds of students who have not been admitted for a diploma in legal practice for the academic year 2024/2025 have dragged the Law Development Centre (LDC) and Attorney General (AG) to court.
In the judicial review application, Arthur Caleb Mugerwa, Wiliam Buyinza Jingo, Erron Mirembe, Douglas Andabati, Charles Mayanja Lwanga, and Elvis Mugisha, through LIN advocates, are among others seeking an order of mandamus compelling LDC to admit them and other applicants who qualify for the same in this academic year.
The six further want a court injunction issued restraining LDC from proceeding with the process for the academic year 2024/25 without having all eligible applicants considered.
Mugerwa and colleagues also want an order of certiorari issued quashing the decision of LDC to admit only 1,260 of the eligible applicants from 14 law schools’ applicants, irrespective of their grades.
The group is further seeking a declaration that the admission criteria adopted by LDC of admitting an equal share of 28% of the eligible students were illegal, irrational, and centrally to equity and natural justice, arguing that the entire admission process/exercise should be declared illegal, null, void, and an infringement on their academic rights.
They also want an order of mandamus issued compelling the Attorney General to diligently exercise the government oversight role on LDC relating to the admission criteria and the right to education for all, arguing that it has failed in ensuring that LDC operates, admits, and considers applicants based on equity.
Mugerwa and his colleagues contend that LDC acted irrationally to make applications indicating that it would conduct the program on four campuses, yet it at all times knew that it would be conducting it on three campuses.
In an affidavit, Mugerwa contends that LDC advertised a call for applications of eligible and interested applicants to join it for, among others, a postgraduate diploma in legal practice for the year 2024/25 and also set the qualifications for the applicants.
He argues that the 28% selection from each university by LDC is an unprecedented criterion, thus excluding majority of the applicants and denying them the right to education, which is very unfair, irrational, null and centrally to the existing set regulations, requirements, equity and natural justice, with procedural impropriety in choosing those who have been admitted.
Mugerwa blames LDC for posting students in only three campuses yet it had indicated four campuses.
He argues that LDC’s collection of sh200,000 as application fees from all the applicants was irrational and amounts to unjust enrichment at the expense of the poor law graduates.
Justifying their case, the six contend that while it has been a practice of LDC to offering deferred admissions to successful applicants of the current academic year/intake to the next intake, this time it was not done without any plausible reason/ground or appropriate remedy, not even a refund.
