–promises to fight for citizens’ ‘freedoms’

ZULFIKAR Ally has dedicated his life to serving the Guyanese people. In addition to being the Deputy Chief of Mission to the United States of America and the former President of the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Guyana, he is an attorney-at-law.

Ally, who was recently admitted to the local bar, pledged to ensure that the freedoms of citizens of “a democratic community” are properly protected.

Ally, who is also the former head of the Multilateral Financial Institutions Department at the Ministry of Finance, had his petition presented last Friday by Attorney-at-Law Davindra Kissoon before Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Georgetown High Court.

It was a sentimental moment for Ally when he addressed the court for the first time as an attorney.

Ally has a history of working in the international affairs industry. He is knowledgeable about the operations of nonprofit organisations and financial institutions, particularly as it relates to organisational management, investments, and finance.

He graduated from the University of Guyana’s Turkeyen campus with a Bachelor of Laws degree.

Ally later commenced the two-year course of studies, assignments, examinations, and practical training for his Legal Education Certificate (LEC) at the Hugh Wooding Law School (HWLS) in Trinidad. He recently received his legal certification.

“Throughout my life, I have had the privilege of meeting but most importantly learning from a lot of people. I do not think that we sometimes look at how those persons, their actions and mere presence in our lives contributed towards our success. And there have been endless, from teachers who do everything humanly possible to prepare you for the world, our bosses and colleagues, whose exemplary leadership provided that input to continue striving to be better,” he said.

He explained that throughout his career he met people who had opened his eyes to see “different perspective on issues of national importance” and thus becoming a lawyer was in someway fulfilling his service.

“I entered into this profession to contribute towards supporting the court as an officer in ensuring that social justice is dispensed with [the] basic principles of fairness [and] equality and [that] human rights are maintained and not trampled upon. That the poor and those that are disvantaged are afforded the opportunity of a hearing, and more importantly that democratic principles that we have embraced as a country continues to be observed,” he added.

Ally explained that as an officer of the court, he will shoulder a “heavy responsibility” to uphold and support the rule of law, and he pledged his commitment to ensure that the freedoms of citizens are properly protected, regardless of which legal field he chooses to practice.

He added that he is cognizant of the fact that the jurisprudence in Guyana is undergoing a rapid transformation and will require legal skills of a magnitude that Guyanese are not accustomed to, but of which the legal fraternity in Guyana is more than capable of meeting.

“I know the honorable Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs and his team are up to that challenge, and I support his passionate efforts of ensuring that Guyana has its own law school, since I have seen many colleagues and friends who are brilliant prospective lawyers not qualifying for an already highly competitive top 25 to attain a legal certificate,” the attorney said.

Looking back at the years it took to reach this point, he told the court that he is an attorney today due to the arduous work, sacrifice and perseverance of not only himself, but his family.

“My father, who is a firm believer in education and who has throughout my life believed even when I had doubts of my potential to succeed in whatever I set out to do.

My late mother [was] also an educator whose upbringing has molded me into what I am today. My sister, who I believe is the first in the extended family to have entered this noble profession and to signal how rewarding but also how possible it is to make it a reality,” he added.

Justice Sewnarine-Beharry welcomed Ally to the bar and urged him to commit to the hard work that success entails and to commit to conducting thorough research to serve his clients and the citizens of this nation.

Among those who witnessed his admission to the bar were Minster of Finance, Ashni Singh; US Ambassador to Guyana, Sarah-Ann Lynch and former Speaker of the National Assembly, Ralph Ramkarran. Ally’s family members, including his sister, Magistrate Zamilla Ally-Seepaul, were also presented at his bar call.