Nazri clarifies Teoh's 'weak character' remark

When the report of the royal commission of inquiry (RCI) into the death of Teoh Beng Hock was unveiled at a press conference yesterday by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Mohd Nazri Aziz, it was said that the commission found Teoh's "weak character" as one of the factors leading to his suicide.

This was read out by Nazri, from a written statement, during the press conference.

However, a check byMalaysiakini showed that the "weak character" remark is not mentioned in the 124-page RCI report.

The written statement, in the Malay language, states: "The outcome of the commission's investigation found that Teoh was not murdered but he felt pressured and stressed due to continuous and aggressive interrogation sessions, strengthened by his weak character which caused him to commit suicide."

(Hasil siasatan Suruhanjaya mendapati bahawa TBH bukan dibunuh tetapi beliau yang merasa terbeban and tertekan dengan sesi soal siasat yang agresif dan berlarutan, disokong dengan perwatakan beliau yang lemah telah menyebabkan beliau membunuh diri.)

Asked about the conflict between his statement and the RCI report, Nazri explained to Malaysiakini that his officers who prepared the statement drew the inference from various paragraphs in the report to come to the "weak character" conclusion.

He said paragraphs 229 and 233 of the Malay version of the report as part of the paragraphs that led to the statement.

Nazri also said the inference was also drawn from the testimony of forensic psychiatrist Paul Edward Mullen (right) which was, however, not cited in the report.

The emeritus professor of forensic psychiatry from Monash University, Australia, was engaged by the Bar Council to assist in the inquiry.

However, the two paragraphs merely illustrate the Teoh's response and state of mind after the interrogations, rather than describe his character.

(The two paragraphs in both Malay and English are at the bottom of this article.)

Other parts in the report, namely paragraph 212 to 216, which analyse Teoh's character also do not indicate “weak character”.

Psychiatrists: Teoh would be in low-risk category

According to two psychiatrists from the Health Ministry - Dr Badi'ah Yahya and Dr Nor Hayati Ali, Teoh came from an intact family and had a stable job.

“Having no history of mental illness, impulsivity or substance abuse, Teoh would be in the low-risk category for suicide. In fact, he was looking forward to his wedding and his fiancee was pregnant,” read the report.

From Teoh's family members and friends, the commission found that Teoh was hardworking, diligent, responsible, devoted to his family, loved children, and was faithful to his boss Ean Yong Hian Wah.

“He appeared to be cruising along fine in life, and there was good reason to believe that the future appeared promising... He was seen to become angry if and when the situation warranted it. Not known to demonstrate extreme emotions, he was never seen to succumb to rage.”

The commission also said that despite the Selangor MACC commencing investigation in June 2009, of which Teoh must have become aware, “he was still able to take things in his stride and manage the usual stresses and challenges of life”.

Nevertheless, the commission noted that the bringing forward of the date of his wedding from 2010 to Oct 13, 2009 upon discovering that his fiancee was pregnant, and the gathering of the documents by the anti-graft body from the district and land offices insinuating a misappropriation of the allocation by Ean Yong, could be regarded by Teoh as a potentially threatening situation.

When Malaysiakini informed Nazri about these paragraphs that illustrate Teoh's character, the minister replied that his officers maintained their stand.

“They are entitled to their opinion just as the opposition are entitled to theirs. It is just a matter of opinion,” he said.

Paragraph 229: By the time the fourth or final stage of the interrogation was over, Teoh would have been almost a mental and physical wreck. When (Selangor MACC officer) Ashraf (Mohd Yunus) fetched him a glass of water (demanded impolitely by Teoh), Teoh was said to have stood up very slowly.

(Apabila soal siasat yang keempat atau pada peringkat terakhir selesai, Teoh hampir-hampir menjadi orang yang kesihatan fizikal atau mentalnya berada dalam keadaan yang amat teruk. Apabila Ashraf mengambilkannya segelas air, (diminta oleh TBH dengan cara yang tidak sopan), TBH dikatakan bergerak dengan amat perlahan apabila dia hendak menegakkan badannya.)

Paragraph 233: Tormented by this predicament, Teoh experienced a change in his state of mind. And in a matter of hours, this change transformed him from being in the low-risk group for suicide into the high-risk group. The doubts, extreme emotional conflict and the immense feeling of guilt were all intolerable. Finally, precipitating the irreversible crisis that happened to him between 3.30am and 7.00am on the 16, was the last straw that broke the camel's back. Finding no viable strategies to surmount the hurdle of accusations levelled, he found himself unable to escape from the suffocating quagmire in which he was trapped. Losing all hope, Teoh would have felt trapped and have succumbed to despair. Since the window on the 14th floor was either open or could be easily opened and it was conspicuous and easily accessible near where he was on the sofa outside (Selangor MACC officer Mohd) Nadzri (Ibrahim)'s room, Teoh would have found that the only way for escape from the torment he was undergoing was by jumping out of the window, even though it meant taking his own life.

(Setelah diseksa dengan kesukaran ini, Teoh mengalami perubahan pada keadaan mindanya. Dan dalam beberapa jam, perubahan ini mengubahnya daripada berada dalam kumpulan berisiko rendah untuk membunuh diri kepada kumpulan berisiko tinggi. Keraguan, konflik emosi yang keterlaluan, rasa bersalah yang mendalam semuanya tidak dapat ditanggungnya. Akhirnya, faktor pencetus krisis yang tidak dapat diubah yang berlaku kepadanya antara 3.30pg dengan 7.00pg pada 16hb, telah menyebabkan keadaannya bertambah parah. Apabila dia tidak menemui strategi yang berkesan untuk mengatasi tuduhan-tuduhan yang dilontarkan kepadanya, dia mendapati dirinya tidak dapat keluar lagi dari keadaan dahsyat yang membelenggunya. Apabila dia putus harapan, TBH berasa terjebak dan tewas kepada kekecewaan. Disebabkan tingkap di tingkat 14 telah terbuka ataupun mudah dibuka, dan ia adalah jelas dan mudah diakses dari sofa di mana dia berada di luar bilik Nadzri, TBH mendapati bahawa satu-satunya cara untuk melepaskan dirinya daripada kesengsaraan yang dilaluinya adalah dengan melompat keluar dari tingkap itu, biarpun ini bermakna mengambil nyawanya sendiri.)

Full RCI report in BM

- Malaysiakini