1. Briefly tell us about yourself and how your friends would describe you?
I am Mugoya
Ashiraf Harid, a student at Islamic University in Uganda-Kampala branch.
My friends
call me a unique person because I try my best to help them, reach out
to them and build them.
I do not want to succeed alone. I want to achieve with all those around me.
Once you achieve something, you will
probably turn back and pull someone once you are there at the top.
Firstly what
inspired me to do law are the injustices the poor and needy people do face. There
are so many needy people out there that do suffer injustices.
You find
someone has been in prison for a very long time over a tiny issue; you see someone losing their land over a minor issue simply because they cannot
access Lawyers or because they are costly.
So I want to
help such people I want to help the needy, I want to help the poor to get
justice because I believe we are all equal before the law and justice
should be served to all of us irrespective of our wealth, status, religion,
tribes or political affiliations because I believe in the rule of law.
Secondly, my
religion. There are so many scenarios I have seen, and it has become a norm, most
especially here in Uganda, that in case any severe crime occurs, Muslims become
the first suspects and these guys are tortured, beaten, imprisoned for a very
long period.
They are released by the
courts only to find out that they are innocent.
These people are not given justice, so I want to rise for that cause; I want to help such people.
I want to raise the flag of my people high to help them so that they can get justice.
3.
Do you wish to become a Lawyer? If
yes, what kind of lawyer do you want to be?
Yes! I wish
to become a lawyer, and it’s what I work for.
The type of lawyer I wish to become will advocate, fight for the people’s rights, and fight for the rule of law since no one is above the law.
Everyone is
equal before the Law, and everyone should get justice irrespective of their
background, regardless of their political affiliations.
4.
As a person with good oratory and
speaking skills, how useful do you think are practical communication skills to
a law student? How can they improve these skills?
Good oratory
skills are essential for a lawyer because you should be in a position to speak
your mind, to stand up and face anyone, any authority, talk to them, fight for
what are correct people where they are wrong?
These skills
help you not fear anyone, be confident, go anywhere, and face a panel
of justices, your colleagues. They have studied from anywhere, whether from
international universities or from where ever.
Good oratory
skills help you be who you are. They help to improve you.
The best way
a Law student can improve these skills is by participating in class and moots.
Moot court sessions are vital because they help students be confident, be themselves, and try to be the best they can be.
5.
What is your favourite law-related
movie/series that you’ve watched before?
My best law-related series is called “Suits.”
I loved Harvey Spector and his associate. I
also loved Louis.
These were
generally good lawyers, and I loved the way they handled issues and the way they
could face problems.
It is just an exciting series.
I remember one
of the famous quotes I got was that “Caring
makes you weak; once you care, people will always step on you.”
So you have to pretend like you don’t care and do what is right.
Also Read: Getting up-close with Mukalazi Vincent
6.
Tell us about a case you disagree with
and why?
The current Kabaziguruka Case where the constitutional court ruled it unconstitutional to prosecute civilians in front of the
court-martial.
I disagreed
with the appeal by the Attorney General, where he appealed to the Supreme Court
and halted the decision of the constitutional court by putting an interim
order.
On the face of
it, it is clear that it is wrong to subject civilians who have never
actually been army personnel to the court-martial.
It is clear
that the court-martial works under a person, and they report to their commander
in chief, unlike these other civilian courts where the law is at the top. So
people get justice in civilian courts as compared to the former.
I disagreed with the Attorney General appealing the decision as well as the Supreme
Court halting the conclusion of the constitutional court
7. Describe a moment when you had to
make a difficult decision, and how it turned out?
It was in senior
five. I had gone back to St. Lawrence. I had changed campus from Crown City to
the Academy. I had been a leader from Senior One to Senior 4, and later on, I decided
to quit elective politics. I did not want to be a leader during my “HAC.”
So I had to
choose whether to get back to everyday life or continue serving my people.
The administrators tried convincing me that I had to be a leader, some students tried to convince me. Still, I instead had to stick to my decision because I claimed I wanted to concentrate on my books, and I did not want to be very active in leadership at the time.
I believed that it would make my results way better than those of my “O” level.
I made the decision. I did not become a leader in my HAC.
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8. What lessons did you learn from
mooting?
In mooting, you make new friends. You get to meet different people with divergent ideas, and
you learn a lot from them.
Every time
you participate in moots, you become a better person. You also learn good oratory
skills or speaking skills, and so you can get the confidence to face a massive
crowd of people or a panel without any fear. You get to be yourself!
You also
learn the court language because the language we use in court is different from
the language we use outside.
These are all skills we learn from mooting. You know to research because you are given a file, and you have done the research and prepared the required documents.
9. If you hadn’t pursued Law, what would
have been your other areas of focus?
If I hadn’t pursued
law, I would have ventured Into is mass communication because it is an exciting
field.
It is a
field I would have used to achieve my goals for pursuing law; I could
still accomplish some of them under journalism in mass communication.
So it would have been my other course or field that I would have ventured into because it’s an interesting one, and I respect the people there. They serve the community very well!
10. Here is a simple riddle for you!
What do lawyers wear to court?
I think
Lawyers wear clothes; they are just brilliant. They can put on a suit. They have to be intelligent, respected, and responsible for the way they dress.
Unfortunately, your answer is wrong
but not a bad try. The answer to the riddle is simply
“Lawyers wear lawsuits to court!”
It was such a pleasure having Mugoya Ashiraf Hard. A lot to learn and take in. We hope you enjoyed the conversation and hopefully picked a thing or two from it.
We hope he re-considers the idea of being a leader once again. We love to see him become great!
#TheFocus
"ut maneat vobiscum in lege"