Posted on

Will Abdullah dissolve Parliament in mid-session for polls?

Will the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi dissolve Parliament to enable the 12th general election to be held this month, although Parliament is in mid-session, rendering six weeks of parliamentary meeting (four of which are on the ongoing debate on the 2008 budget) going to waste?

Almost eight years ago, on November 10, 1999, when it was obvious that the then Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad was going to dissolve Parliament when Parliament was in mid-session debating the 2000 Budget, I had issued the following statement:

“There is nothing in law and constitution against the dissolution of Parliament in mid-session. However, it is scandalous and outrageous for the present Parliament to be dissolved in mid-session when there is no constitutional or political crisis, as Mahathir has a rock-like five-sixth parliamentary majority, for this would mean that the four weeks of parliamentary meeting since Oct. 18 and the public expenses incurred would go to waste, with Ministers avoiding accountability for two weeks of debate on the 2,000 budget.

“Such contempt for Parliamentary conventions and proprieties and insensitivity to public concerns about abuses of power and waste of public funds — and the dissolution of Parliament wasting four weeks of parliamentary meetings is the most recent example — is the result of political arrogance, irresponsibility and political hegemony of the Barisan Nasional after 42-year uninterrupted two-thirds parliamentary majority.”

If Parliament is dissolved this week or when it is in mid-session, the same critique of arrogance of power, utter contempt of Parliamentary conventions and proprieties and insensitivity to public concerns about waste of public funds would apply with even greater force to Abdullah. Continue reading “Will Abdullah dissolve Parliament in mid-session for polls?”

Posted on

Cabinet should halt all temple demolitions – set up RCI on Kampung Rimba Jaya Sri Maha Mariaman Temple demolition

The Cabinet on Wednesday should issue a directive for a total halt to all temple demolitions in the country and set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry into Tuesday’s Kampung Rimba Jaya Sri Maha Mariaman Temple demolition in Shah Alam and to draw up national guidelines for all future demolitions to ensure they do not trample on religious and cultural sensitivities.

All temple demolitions should stop until the Royal Commission of Inquiry has come out with its report and recommendations for national guidelines for all future demolitions of places of worship which take fully into account the Merdeka social contract 50 years ago which assured all religions a rightful place in the country, the first Rukunegara principle of “Belief in God” as well as the religious and cultural sensitivities of a multi-religious and multi-racial Malaysia.

What happened at Kampung Rimba Jaya on Tuesday, where brute and naked force was displayed by the Shah Alam City Hall (MBSA) enforcement authorities in utter disregard of proper procedures, religious and cultural sensitivities in the demolition of the 40-year-old Sri Maha Mariaman Temple, resulting in many injured, 20 people including four lawyers arrested, has caused great damage to Malaysian nation-building and is most shameful especially in a year when the country is celebrating 50 years of independent nationhood.

The highhanded and reckless manner in which the Sri Maha Mariaman Temple was demolished had raised the question, not only in Malaysia but internationally, whether Malaysia really respects the fundamental and constitutional rights of Malaysians to “freedom of religion” as enshrined in Article 11 of the Federal Constitution.

It is no exaggeration to say that to a significant section of the Malaysian population, the 50th Merdeka anniversary celebrations have been rendered meaningless by such arbitrary actions by those in authority which are completely contemptuous of the legitimate rights and sensitivities of different communities and religions in the country. Continue reading “Cabinet should halt all temple demolitions – set up RCI on Kampung Rimba Jaya Sri Maha Mariaman Temple demolition”

Posted on

Will the crisis of judiciary balloon into Abdullah’s first major crisis of confidence because of government attempt to bury the Lingam Tape scandal as a non-issue?

With five days to go for the three-man Haidar Panel to complete its finding, the Panel will go down in the nation’s history as the most useless and impotent inquiry with the least to do and the least expected of it in view of its ridiculously narrow and restricted term of reference to establish the authenticity of the Lingam Tape with its explosive expose of the perversion of the course of justice with serious allegations of fixing of judicial appointments and court decisions.

With the retirement of Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim as Chief Justice without any extension, the powers-that-be may be minded to think that this is opportune time to lay to rest the controversy of the Lingam Tape which was released by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on Sept. 18.

Two weeks ago, the de facto Law Minister, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz appeared to be coaching the Haidar Panel on its finding when he said that it would be “unfortunate if the mechanism (Haidar Panel) set up is not used by the people” as “we may conclude there is no case”!

Is the Haidar Panel being coached by Nazri to come out with the finding that the Lingam Tape is a non-issue as no witness has come forward to vouch for its authenticity?

Although such a final finding by the Haidar Panel would come as no surprise, it would nonetheless be a scandal of the first magnitude for it is just outrageous that a panel to establish the authenticity of the Lingam Tape had no independent powers of investigations but must depend solely on the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA) for its technical expertise and forensic finding.

When Osama bin Laden occasionally emerged from his hideout to issue dire warnings to the United States government in his videotapes, no one from the White House, FBI or CIA would take the position that unless Osama or some witness surface to vouch for their authenticity, or unless the original tape is produced, the tapes concerned would be regarded as fakes!

Why then are the Malaysian Cabinet Ministers and the various government agencies, including the Haidar Panel, taking such a ridiculous stand? Continue reading “Will the crisis of judiciary balloon into Abdullah’s first major crisis of confidence because of government attempt to bury the Lingam Tape scandal as a non-issue?”

Posted on

Fairuz CJ no more, but crisis of judiciary continues – appoint RCI to end Haidar Panel charade

It is a big sigh of relief all round that Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim has indeed retired as Chief Justice and his application for the customary six-month extension had been rejected.

But why should it take a “shadow” constitutional crisis to effect something which is right and proper for the country?

It bespeaks of a constitution and system of justice which have gone seriously awry and should be put right without any more delay.

The following quotes from the 14th Law Conference are more than sufficient to demand bold and far-reaching reforms to restore public confidence in the independence, integrity and quality of the judiciary, viz:

“It is time for the judiciary to regain the public’s confidence and bring back the glory years.” — Sultan Azlan Shah

“The golden era of the judiciary was before 1988.
“Then came the watershed in 1988 and the system deteriorated so rapidly, so much so that I gratefully retired in 1995.” — former Court of Appeal judge Datuk V.C.George.

“What does the Constitution mean to me? It means nothing to me at the moment, because it can be changed at any time.” Raja Aziz Addruse, senior lawyer.

Continue reading “Fairuz CJ no more, but crisis of judiciary continues – appoint RCI to end Haidar Panel charade”

Posted on

RM27 million cop charged – call for end to “headless administration” and multi-millionaire cops

The charging of the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Datuk Ramli Yusuff in the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court yesterday with two counts of failing to make a full disclosure of his assets and another for involvement in business which entail a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison if convicted has raised the curtain for public view of something very rotten both in the police force as well as the government.

It warrants an urgent call for an end to the “headless administration” presently prevalent in the country in the past four years, as it is most disheartening to the Malaysian public that despite the Royal Police Commission Report and its 125 recommendations to create an efficient, incorruptible, professional world-class police service to keep crime low, eradicate corruption and respect human rights, the rot both in the police and government have got worse rather than improve for the better.

The prosecution of the “RM27 million cop” reminds Malaysians of two serious allegations about corruption in the police force –

  • The allegation by former top cop who was the country’s longest-serving Inspector-General of Police Tun Hanif Omar in August that 40% of senior police officers could be arrested for corruption without further investigations strictly on the basis of their lifestyles;
  • The Royal Police Commission Report in May 2005 which found that “corruption is still widespread among police personnel” (p 9), recounting the case from a complainant of a senior police officer who made an asset declaration amounting to RM34 million but no action had been taken.

    The Ramli prosecution has refocused public attention on the problem of police corruption and millionaire and multi-millionaire plice officers — and the failure to implement the recommendations of Royal Police Commission for zero tolerance for corruption in the police force. Continue reading “RM27 million cop charged – call for end to “headless administration” and multi-millionaire cops”

    • Posted on

    Malaysia without a Chief Justice for one day?

    Right from the very beginning of today’s parliamentary sitting, MPs were interested only in two questions — and answers to both are not to be found in Parliament, viz:

    • The outcome of Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim’s application for six-month extension as Chief Justice, as he turned 66 yesterday — in view of unprecedentedly strong objections not only from the Opposition, the Bar Council, the civil society but also by Malay Rulers; and
    • Whether Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Datuk Ramli Yusuff, the cop alleged to have RM27 million undeclared assets, will be charged for corruption.

      News have finally come in that Ramli has been charged in the Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court with three counts of failing to disclose his assets in his sworn statement under the Anti-Corruption Act 1997.

      There are still no news however as to the outcome of Ahmad Fairuz’ application for extension as Chief Justice from the two-day Conference of Rulers, raising the question whether the nation is without a Chief Justice for today.

      Many must be asking – Why the secrecy and mystery surrounding the appointment of Chief Justice, which is completely against the principles of accountability and transparency. Continue reading “Malaysia without a Chief Justice for one day?”

    Posted on

    Ops Lalang onslaught on human rights, press freedom, independent judiciary – no signs of better safeguards under Abdullah

    The 1987 Operation Lalang mass Internal Security Act (ISA) dragnet of 106 detainees representing a wide spectrum of dissent, including MPs, civil rights leaders, Chinese educationists and social activists, was not only a black day for human rights in Malaysia, but set the scene for a triple onslaught on the fundamental basis of a democratic Malaysia — human rights, press freedom and an independent judiciary.

    What stemmed from a fight for political survival of the then Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad who was faced with the greatest challenge to his power position from within Umno turned into the most relentless assault on democracy in Malaysia in the nation’s 50-year history — and the country is still paying the consequences of that assault.

    And what is worse, there are no signs that the triple targets of the 1987 Ops Lalang onslaught, viz human rights, press freedom and an independent judiciary, are better safeguarded two decades later on the fourth anniversary of Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s premiership.

    I am very disappointed that the Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail had decided to appeal against the High Court decision awarding Abdul Malek Hussin RM2.5 million in damages for having been unlawfully arrested, detained and beaten up while in police custody under the ISA in 1998. Continue reading “Ops Lalang onslaught on human rights, press freedom, independent judiciary – no signs of better safeguards under Abdullah”

    Posted on

    An Open Letter to Sultan Azlan Shah

    Your Royal Highness,

    Thank you very much for portraying the truth about the state of the country’s judiciary and your accompanying clarion call for major reforms in the judiciary during your opening address at the 14th Malaysian Law Conference recently.

    You acknowledged with sadness that “there has been some disquiet about our judiciary over the past few years and in the more recent past… there have been even more disturbing events relating to the judiciary reported in the press”.

    “We have also witnessed the unprecedented act of a former Court of Appeal judge writing in his post-retirement book of erroneous and questionable judgments delivered by our higher courts in a chapter under the heading ‘When Justice is Not Administered According to Law’.”

    You highlighted “serious criticisms” against the judiciary such as delayed judgments and backlog in cases as a result of incompetence. You gave the example of a case of medical negligence involving a death of a lawyer which took 23 years to reach the Court of Appeal.

    “Similarly there have been reports that some judges have taken years to write their grounds of judgments involving accused persons who have been convicted and languishing in death row.” (Like the judge who failed to deliver 35 judgments including four in which the convicted are languishing in jail despite being sentenced to death seven years ago?)

    “Surely, such a situation cannot be tolerated in any progressive nation,” Your Royal Highness so very aptly concluded. The powers that be should therefore understand why the lawyers walked, the people talked and the rest blogged.

    You have rightly pointed out that this is not the first time that you have expressed grave concern over the judiciary: “In 2004, I had stated that it grieved me, having been a member of the judiciary, whenever I heard allegations against the judiciary and the erosion of public confidence in the judiciary.” Continue reading “An Open Letter to Sultan Azlan Shah”

    Posted on

    Malaysia: The People Are Fed Up

    By Farish A. Noor

    At a recent Law Conference held in Kuala Lumpur, the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, bluntly told the country’s lawyers that demonstrations and protests about the apparent mismanagement of the country will do little to change things but will only give the ‘wrong impression’ that ‘something is wrong in the country’, and that this will scare aware foreign investors. The Malaysian leader was alluding to a recent protest march organised by the country’s lawyers which saw more than two thousand lawyers march up to the Prime Minister’s office in the capital of Putrajaya demanding reform of the judicial process and serious enquiries into the conduct and election of judges in Malaysia. Perhaps the Prime Minister was also alluding to the planned march on 10th November organised by NGOs like BERSIH which have called for free and fair elections in the country, supported by opposition parties like the Peoples Justice Party (PKR), the Malaysian Islamic party (PAS) and the Democratic Action Party (DAP) of Malaysia as well.

    What began as a relatively small event has now grown into what may become a landmark moment in Malaysian history: The march’s organisers aim to gather 100,000 citizens at the Merdeka (Independence) Square of the city and then march on to the national palace to present their petition to the King (Agong) himself, calling for the Monarch to intervene and look into their complaints about the poor governance of the country on issues ranging from corruption to abuse of power by the leaders of the ruling UMNO party and the government. As Latheefa Koya of the People’s Justice Party notes: “BERSIH’s march marks a crucial point in Malaysian history where people from all walks of life, and not just political parties, demand free and fair elections in Malaysia. By doing so they are in fact calling for greater participation in the democratic process”. The King has already signalled that he is prepared to receive the petition, while other rulers such as Sultan Azlan Shah of the state of Perak have publicly bemoaned the state of the judiciary in Malaysia.

    While it is true that Malaysia is not Burma, it is striking to note how intolerant the state is when it comes to popular expressions of the people’s will in the country. Predictably the Malaysian government has reacted to the proposed march on 10th November with the usual round of threats: Those who attend the demonstration will be regarded as trouble makers and due action will be taken, the government-controlled news agencies have already warned. Continue reading “Malaysia: The People Are Fed Up”

    Posted on

    Police at war with itself

    Before Parliament adjourned at 7.30 pm, I asked the Deputy Internal Security Minister, Datuk Foo Ah Kiow to give a proper, informed and satisfactory report on the unprecedented phenomenon of “the police at war with itself” as well as “at war” with the Internal Security Ministry when he resumes his reply on behalf of his Ministry on the 2008 Budget tomorrow.

    I had referred in particular to the three-page press statement earlier in the day by the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) chief Ramli Yusuff, where he made serious allegations about victimization of CCID officers by the police and mistreatment by the Anti-Corruption Agency (ACA).

    Ramli confirmed that he was the police officer being investigated for amassing RM27 million in undeclared assets and denied that he had amassed RM27 million.

    Ramli said he had “until today remained silent about developments in the police force, in particular, the arrest and prosecution of officers of the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) who are alleged to have falsified statements of confidential informants in connection with the banishment of one Goh Cheng Poh @ Tengku”.

    Goh, who was alleged to be an underworld kingpin in Johore, was ordered to be detained on the directive of Deputy Internal Security Minister Datuk Johari Baharom based on the intelligence gathered by police officers of CCID.

    Goh was eventually “banished” to Jeli, Kelantan and subsequently applied to the High Court to set aside Johari’s banishment order.

    In Parliament today, I read out five paragraphs from Ramli’s three-page statement, viz:

    “In an unprecedented stance, the legal adviser of the Ministry of Internal Security, an officer of the Attorney-General’s Chambers, declined to advise and direct my officers and I (to) prepare affidavits of the events surrounding the preparation of the investigative papers on Goh for the benefit of the deputy minister of internal security.

    “Those affidavits were to be filed in the High Court arising from the application by Goh to have his banishment order set aside. Given the constraints of time, we, the officers of the CCID, sought legal advice from a private law practice who advised and assisted in the preparation of the draft affidavits concerned. Continue reading “Police at war with itself”

    Posted on

    Judicial independence – Sultan Azlan Shah’s “disquiet” only that of one person?

    In my Open Letter to Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim last Tuesday to act in the national interest to restore public confidence in the judiciary by withdrawing his controversial application for a six-month extension, I had quoted extensively from former Lord President, Perak Sultan Azlan Shah’s April 2004 postscript to his book “Constitutional Monarchy, Rule of Law and Good Governance” over the “disquiet” at the erosion of public confidence in the judiciary over the previous few years.

    I had said that Sultan Azlan Shah’s “critique of the parlous state of the judiciary is even more pertinent today than when he wrote it in April 2004, with the entire period falling under your (Ahmad Fairuz) term as Chief Justice — a powerful reason why Tun should avert a constitutional crisis and a new crisis of confidence over the judiciary over the controversial application for a six-month extension.”

    This has been confirmed by Sultan Azlan Shah In his opening speech at the 14th Malaysia Law Conference yesterday, as he said:

    Sadly I must acknowledge there has been some disquiet about our judiciary over the past few years and in the more recent past. In 2004, I had stated that it grieved me, having been a member of the judiciary, whenever I heard allegations against the judiciary and the erosion of public confidence in the judiciary.

    Recently there have been even more disturbing events relating to the judiciary reported in the press. We have also witnessed the unprecedented act of a former Court of Appeal judge writing in his post-retirement book of erroneous and questionable judgements delivered by our higher courts in a chapter under the heading “When Justice is Not Administered According to Law”. There are other serious criticisms.

    I am driven nostalgically to look back to a time when our Judiciary was the pride of the region, and our neighbours spoke admiringly of our legal system. We were then second to none and the judgements of our courts were quoted confidently in other common law jurisdictions. As Tun Suffian, a former Lord President of the then Federal Court, said of the local judges who took over from the expatriate judges after Merdeka that the transformation was without “any reduction in standards”.

    Admittedly society is more complex today and the task of judges may be more difficult then what it was before, but the values I speak of are universal and eternal.

    There is no reason why judges with the assured security of tenure they enjoy under the Constitution should not discharge their duties impartially, confidently and competently.

    Will the de facto Law Minister, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz dismiss Sultan Azlan Shah’s increasing “disquiet” about the crisis of confidence in the judiciary as a “false” perception and baseless allegation of one person, in the way he dismissed the concern of Malaysian Bar on the ground that it is no “big deal” as only 1,000 out of 13,000 lawyers or 26 million Malaysians had taken part in the “Walk for Justice” to the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya?

    Posted on

    50-50 whether next general election this year or next year

    With Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi celebrating his fourth anniversary as the fifth Prime Minister in two days’ time, which also marks more than 3 years and 7 months after his unprecedented landslide victory in the 2004 general election, the question everyone is asking is the date for the next general election.

    There are three possibilities for the 12th general election in Malaysia:

    1. This year, with November 25 as the “hottest” date, with Abdullah in this scenario announcing dissolution of Parliament at the end of the Umno General Assembly on Nov. 9;

    2. Before end of next April with the “hottest date” in mid-March, 2008 before Anwar Ibrahim regains his civil liberties to stand for elective office; and

    3. After April next year as there appears to be growing support in Umno for the school of thought that the next general election should “exorcise” the Anwar factor and not allow it to haunt Umno after the next general election on the ground that the election outcome would have been very different if Anwar had been allowed to contest — and based on the confidence that Umno is enjoying a very favourable political climate in the Malay heartland and the Umno constituencies.

    Continue reading “50-50 whether next general election this year or next year”

    Posted on

    Another Promised Change!

    by M. Bakri Musa

    In a recent meeting with media representatives, Chief Secretary to the Government (its topmost civil servant) Sidek Hassan assured the public that civil servants must now “perform or face the music.” He also revealed the demotions of senior officers, including a few in the “super scale” grade and a Director-General.

    Sidek’s assurance was undoubtedly in response to the damning indictments in the recent Auditor General’s Report. (What else is new?) The Chief Secretary went on with promises of more actions. Let us hope that his pledge is for real. We have been through all these promised changes before, so citizens’ cynicism is understandable.

    The civil service cannot be improved merely through edicts from high above. No less than Prime Minister Abdullah had made many similar pledges before.

    As the top civil servant, Sidek cannot effect meaningful changes until he knows the details of the various operations under him. Not all of them; he needs study only two or three processes in some detail, identify the problems, and then solve them. With that he could teach others and replicate the success elsewhere.

    All too often our top civil servants and ministers are content only with mere utterances: “Be productive!” “Compete with the best!” Unless they know the details of the operations of their departments, identify and eliminate the redundant processes, they could not hope to improve their services. These senior officers should not expect their overworked line workers to come up with innovative solutions. Besides, they lack the necessary knowledge or skills. Continue reading “Another Promised Change!”

    Posted on

    PM boycotts Law Conference (updated)

    “Bar Council’s conference scores double firsts” was the Sunday Star headline report for the three-day 14th Malaysian Law Conference 2007 themed “50 Years of Merdeka” at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre beginning today.

    The Sunday Star headline was right but the “double firsts” will be for completely different reasons.

    Last night, I learnt that the de facto Law Minister, Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz, who in a lengthy New Sunday Times interview yesterday asked “Where got crisis of the judiciary?”, will not be closing the Conference on Wednesday as announced in the Conference Programme.

    This morning, I learn that the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, will be boycotting the Law Conference, although he is scheduled to deliver the keynote address at the opening session from 9.40 am – 10.30 am after the opening by the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Azlan Shah.

    Where got judicial crisis? Where got constitutional crisis?

    Postscript – The Prime Minister is inviting all participants of the Law Conference to an unscheduled dinner at Hotel Renaissance tonight.

    Malaysiakini reported that Abdullah will read his keynote address meant for delivery at the Law Conference this morning at the dinner.

    Malaysiakini also reported that Abdullah “cancelled his appearance at the opening ceremony at the eleventh hour to officiate the launch of the East Coast Economic Region project” in Kuala Terengganu.

    Posted on

    Apology from PM Abdullah to 106 Ops Lalang ISA detainees

    At this hour on this day 20 years ago, Lim Guan Eng, who had been elected Member of Parliament for Kota Melaka for just a year, had already been detained as the first of 106 detainees representing a wide spectrum of dissent, including MPs, civil rights leaders, Chinese educationists and social activists in the Operation Lalang mass arrests under the Internal Security Act (ISA).

    By this hour 20 years ago, Karpal Singh and I had also been detained, when together with other DAP MPs we went to the High Street Kuala Lumpur Police Station over Guan Eng’s detention.

    The 1987 Ops Lalang mass ISA detentions was not only a black day for human rights in Malaysia, it also marked the most relentless assault on democracy in Malaysia and we are still paying the consequences of that assault — which stemmed from the fight for political survival of the then Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad who was faced with the greatest challenge to his power position from within Umno.

    One upshot of Mahathir’s battle for his political life 20 years ago was the Operation Lalang and 106 ISA detainees and another was the subversion of the doctrine of the separation of powers, with Parliament and the judiciary subordinated as subservient organs of the Prime Minister.

    The seeds for the 1988 judiciary crisis over the arbitrary and unconstitutional sacking of Tun Saleh Abas as Lord President and Datuk George Seah and the late Tan Sri Wan Suleman Pawanteh as Supreme Court judges were sown at this period.

    Even before the Operation Lalang, there were moves by Mahathir to subjugate the judiciary and I had publicly spoken up against a proposal to move a substantive motion in Parliament to censure the then High Court judge, the late Justice Harun Hashim, as a lesson to all judges to toe the Executive line.

    Today, Malaysia is still paying a heavy price for the fateful decisions taken 20 years ago to undermine the democratic fundamentals in the country as represented by the doctrine of the separation of powers — with the country reeling from one judiciary crisis to another in the past two decades, the latest over the failure of judicial leadership of the Chief Justice, Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim, the Lingam Tape scandal, Ahmad Fairuz preposterous application for a six-month extension as Chief Justice from Nov. 1 and whether Malaysia will have an UMNO Chief Justice for the first time in 50 years. Continue reading “Apology from PM Abdullah to 106 Ops Lalang ISA detainees”

    Posted on

    Cold-blooded killing of two cops, Jayabalan and Alagesan, condemned by all Malaysians

    Malaysians are shocked and revolted by the cold-blooded killing of two police inspectors, L/Kpl K. Jayabalan from the Gombak police and detective L/Kpl M. Alagesan from the city police headquarters during a drug bust in Sungai Buloh on Thursday night and the killers must be hunted down and brought to justice.

    Deepest condolences to the families of the two cops who died in the course of duty. It is both an outrage and tragedy that their families will be grieving instead of having a Deepavali celebration in a fortnight’s time.

    The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, who is also Internal Security Minister, said the deaths of the two police officers during the drug raid could have been avoided if the police had adopted a proper strategy and followed procedures.

    The avoidable death of two police officers cannot be taken lightly, and if the Prime Minister is right, then there should be a full inquiry as to why the correct strategy and procedures had not been followed and who were responsible for such negligence resulting in the unnecessary sacrificing of two cops.

    Parliament and the nation are entitled to know what lessons are being learnt if the deaths of the two police inspectors were the cause of avoidable negligence and sloppiness on the part of the police in carrying out a drug bust — and what measures the government and the police are taking to help the two bereaved families who are afflicted with the irreplaceable losses. Continue reading “Cold-blooded killing of two cops, Jayabalan and Alagesan, condemned by all Malaysians”

    Posted on

    Don’t create new CJ crisis with appointment of first Umno CJ in 50 years

    There is growing concern that to avoid a grave constitutional crisis that will erupt with the extension of Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim as Chief Justice after Nov. 1, the country may be plunged to another equally grave crisis of confidence in the independence and integrity of the judiciary — the appointment of an UMNO Chief Justice for the first time in the 50-year history of Malaysia, namely Tan Sri Zaki Tun Azmi.

    The appointment of Zaki as Federal Court Judge in early September, which involved an unprecedented “triple jump” without first serving as judge of High Court and Court of Appeal, was the first in the nation’s 50-year history, raising the question whether the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was paving the way to appoint Zaki as a future Chief Justice.

    Nobody questions the legal qualifications and capabilities of Zaki but there are many legitimate questions as to the suitability of his judicial appointment, in particular as Chief Justice.

    Is the country going to start the second half-century of nationhood with an UMNO Chief Justice, when for five decades, there had never been any judge who could be said to be an Umno judge in terms of his party membership and his long services to Umno as a political party.

    For the past 22 years, Zaki was an active Umno member and lawyer, representing Umno in many controversial and even dubious Umno cases, culminating variously as head of Umno legal advisor, head of Umno disciplinary committee panel and in 2001 as Deputy Chairman of Umno Disciplinary Board of Appeal. Continue reading “Don’t create new CJ crisis with appointment of first Umno CJ in 50 years”

    Posted on

    Firefly and Subang

    Letter
    by Z. Ibrahim

    It is said sometimes that there are only two categories of people in this world. Employers and employees, entrepreneurs and wage seekers, risk takers and non-risk takers.

    Employees in general are content with salaries and allowances commensurate with their experience, qualifications and working hours.

    Entrepreneurs however, take huge risks by actually starting a new entity or business which generally requires workers and capital outlay. Entrepreneurs are greatly respected in open markets such as the United States. Malaysia had a similar tradition which included the late Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong.

    The long drawn out silent battle to acquire Subang as an air terminal between Air Asia and MAS was plain to everyone. Which carrier should the government support? Neither. Only the market must be allowed to determine who prevails or survives.

    If Subang is to be changed again to an air terminal, every airline including both Air Asia and MAS must be given a go at it. To sneakily allow MAS’s Firefly to operate from Subang on the basis that its turbo-prop planes are environmentally friendly to residents around the airport is to encourage a lop-sided policy of quiet favoritism, possibly because the government has a share in MAS.

    This would be sending the wrong signal to venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, investors and FDIs.This inequality may translate into businesses and capital running out of the country. Continue reading “Firefly and Subang”

    Posted on

    Haris Ibrahim, well done!

    Well done, Haris Ibrahim of The People’s Parliament, for his initiative in launching and submitting 5,036 signatures to the Yang di Pertuan Agong in his online petition for royal intervention for the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Lingam Tape scandal on the perversion of the course of justice implicating the Chief Justice, Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim.

    Haris, one of the country’s most distinguished human right advocates, submitted the petition with the signatures to the Istana Negara at 10.35 am this morning — exceeding the 5,000-signature target he had set.

    Haris had wound up the signature petition earlier than expected in view of the meeting of the Conference of Rulers on Wednesday, 31st October 2007.

    However, Malaysians who wish to support the “Save The Judiciary” online petition can still do so as Haris is prepared to submit a second batch of signatures before the Conference of Rulers meeting — giving a three-day window for a final push for the campaign.

    As Haris told the Malaysiakini:

    “If there are sufficient signatures, we’ll deliver them to His Majesty’s office so that more Malaysians can express their concerns to the monarch”.

    Those who have not endorsed the “Save the Judiciary” online petition should do so immediately.

    Posted on

    Abdullahs’ 4th anniversary as PM – marked by constitutional crisis with no CJ after Nov. 1?

    The question uppermost in many minds is whether the fourth anniversary of Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi next week will be marked by his biggest constitutional crisis with the country without a Chief Justice for the first time in 50 years.

    It is open secret that the application by Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim for a six-month extension as Chief Justice from November 1 has catapulted the country to the precipice of a national crisis, as it is not only opposed by the Bar Council and the civil society but also by the Conference of Rulers.

    In his 55 months as Chief Justice, Ahmad Fairuz had chalked up a catalogue of failures of judicial leadership, particularly:

    • His failure to build on the efforts of his predecessor Tun Abdullah Dzaiddin take the country to another critical level to restore national and international confidence in the independence, integrity and quality of the judiciary in the tradition of the three distinguished Lord Presidents of the country, Tun Suffian, Tun Raja Azlan Shah and Tun Saleh Abas;
    • His mishandling of the appointment of a new Chief Judge of Malaya to succeed Tan Sri Siti Normah Yaakob on 5th January 2007 after a six-month extension, resulting in a seven-month stand-off with the Conference of Rulers and a most deplorable situation where the country was left without a proper and lawful Chief Judge of Malaya for over seven months;
    • His embroilment in the Lingam Tape scandal to the extent that the Chief Justice has become a “fugitive” from the media and the public, with the Hari Raya party of the judicial and legal service yesterday declared completely “off-limits” for the media just because the Chief Justice was attending and was afraid to be asked questions about his role and involvement in the Lingam Tape scandal!

    There can be three scenarios after the meeting of the Conference of Rulers on Wednesday and Thursday: Continue reading “Abdullahs’ 4th anniversary as PM – marked by constitutional crisis with no CJ after Nov. 1?”