Karpal files suit against CJ

Karpal mocked Zaki for keeping silent over the misconduct complaint. — file pic

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 12 — DAP chairman Karpal Singh filed for a judicial review today at the High Court here to compel Chief Justice Tun Zaki Azmi to reply to a complaint of misconduct made last year.

Karpal, who is also a federal lawmaker, has repeatedly accused Zaki of hypocrisy for rapping jurists and other court officials of being on the take after the latter was reported to have offered bribes while a lawyer.

“It took me six months to be nice, to bribe each and every individual to get back into their good books before our files were attended to,” the New Straits Times had published on November 7, 2008, quoting Zaki who had then just been promoted to the top judge post.

Karpal has repeatedly attacked Zaki over the 2008 disclosure, and pressed him to resign his post, despite the latter’s claims he was misquoted.

In a news conference today, the Bukit Gelugor MP said Zaki had breached Section 13 of the Judges’ Code of Ethics by maintaining silence over a complaint made against him.

“My complaint against him is a serious one... of misconduct,” he said.

The opposition politician added that Zaki, as a public authority, was required to respond to a public complaint and set up a panel to investigate the claim.

But since the complaint was against him, Zaki should have stepped down and appointed another judge to probe the case, Karpal explained.

He later mocked the chief justice for disregarding the judiciary’s key performance index (KPI) he himself had set.

“If an MP’s complaint can be ignored, what more the rakyat’s?” he asked.

Karpal had first raised the issue in Parliament in November 2008, and moved to table a motion to dismiss the CJ.

The motion was dismissed by Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia on grounds Parliament has no powers to discuss a judge’s conduct. - Malaysian Insider