Chief Justice launches examination software

The Chief Justice, Justice Gertrude Sackey Torkornoo, has launched a new software for the Independent Examination Committee (IEC) of the General Legal Council (GLC), the body mandated to conduct examinations for professional law students and admission to the Ghana School of Law. 

The new software, which includes a website and examination portal, centralises all activities relating to examinations conducted by the IEC and is meant to enhance the effective management and administration of examinations by the IEC.

Among other features, the software allows prospective law students to buy examination vouchers, seamlessly register for the professional law programme entrance examination and also check their admission status.

For professional law students, the software gives them a one-stop shop for everything relating to examination, including payment and registration for examination and resit, checking of results, and applying for remarking and re-tallying of results.

It also allows the IEC to randomly assign examination scripts to examiners and moderators, thus removing the human interface in such processes.

Significance

The Chief Justice described the new software as great news for legal education as it would not only enhance the operations of the IEC and improve the administration and management of examination, but was also key in promoting standards and integrity of legal education.

She, therefore, praised the Chairperson of the IEC, past Chairpersons and staff of the IEC and other stakeholders who were instrumental in establishing the software. “I am extremely excited because it is very worrisome when integrity of examinations are discussed in the public space.

“I am grateful that finally, we have in place a software for the administration of examinations of professional legal education in the country to be used by the Independent Examinations Committee of the General Legal Council (GLC), Justice Torkornoo added.

She further said that “technology is transforming the fabric of our lives, digitalisation is, therefore, not just a trend but a fundamental shift in how we interact, how we work and how we manage virtually every activity”.

The Chief Justice urged all stakeholders, especially law students to get acquainted with the software and ensure strict adherence to deadlines.

Reforms

The Chairperson of the IEC, Justice Prof. Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu, a Justice of the Supreme Court, said the new software was part of reforms introduced by her outfit to improve the committee’s operations.

She said the IEC had already introduced reforms to modernise and streamline its operations, strengthen its administrative system and enhance its oversight activities outsourced to external entities.

“The adoption of digital technology in the form of the new website and examination portal is in line with the activities that are seeking to enhance the capabilities of the IEC to perform its statutory functions.

“The new website and examination portal has been custom-built for the IEC by Ghanaian software developers. It has been long in coming, but it has now come, and comes at a time when it is most needed,” she added.

The Director of the Ghana School of Law and Legal Education, Barimah Yaw Kodie Oppong, said the new software was a further testament that the admission process into the Ghana School of Law and call to the Bar is based on merit, describing the process as “transparent and no respecter of persons.”

The Dean of the University of Ghana Law School, Prof. Raymond Atuguba, urged the operators to continuously implement stringent measures to prevent the system from manipulation and hacking.

Writer’s email: emma.hawkson@graphic.com.gh