|
Tuesday, April 19, 2005
2 prosecutors oppose abolition of bar exams
By Raquel C. Bagnol
TWO government prosecutors opposed Monday the proposal of Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago to abolish the bar examinations as this is needed to maintain the dignity of the legal profession.
"The bar exams just can't be abolished because of the low rate of passers but this should be a challenge to the schools offering law courses to intensify and improve their method of teaching," Public Attorney's Office 11 Regional Director Ridgeway Tanjili told Sun.Star.
He added the low rate of bar exam passers could be due to the laxity of schools or the students themselves.
"Dapat habang nag-aaral pa lang, students will be purged and sifted so that only those who really qualify will graduate from the course," Tanjili said.
Assistant City Prosecutor Victor Dumlao added that although the bar examination is not the absolute means of determining a law student's capacity to practice law, it could not be abolished.
"It is not the sole decisive factor but it's one means to determine a student's capability. The best way is to change the procedure in the bar examinations but not to abolish it," Dumlao said, adding that the manual checking of the bar examination notebooks could take its toll on the one who checks it.
He added that aspiring law students are required to take the qualifying examinations before they can be admitted to law school.
A day after the Supreme Court released the list of successful bar examinees for 2004, Santiago said she would file a resolution to urge her colleagues to call for the abolition of the bar exams.
"The bar exams are not the best gauge of one's aptitude to practice law because it fails to test the skills needed in the legal profession," said Santiago.
Santiago also said the passing rate for the bar exams in the past five years was very low.
Of the 5,249 law graduates who took last year's bar exams, only 1,259 passed, or a passing rate of 31.61 percent.
Santiago wants the bar exams replaced with a National Law School Aptitude Test, taken as a requirement for admission to law school. She said there should also be a one-year Legal Internship Program after a law student graduates. (with PR)
For Bisaya stories from Davao. Click here. (April 19, 2005 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
SUPERBALITA
WEEKEND
|
