AG as Bar chief proposal ‘needs in-depth discussion’

Laws will need to be amended to make AG automatically the Bar chief, says minister Nancy Shukri.

KUALA LUMPUR: The laws will need to be amended for the Attorney-General to automatically be Malaysian Bar chief, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nancy Shukri.

She said at the moment, the chairperson of the Bar was elected through voting.

“If a proposal is accepted, the 166 Act (Legal Profession Act) will need to be changed.

“The government will look at it in depth and present it to the relevant parties. It needs to be discussed in depth,” she said when winding up the debate on the Legal Profession (Amendment) Bill today.

The suggestion was made by Nasrun Mansor (BN-Silam) to appoint the AG as Bar Council chairman.

He wanted the Bar to stay out of politics and refrain from making political statements.

He also felt the body had gone overboard by challenging the AG’s decision in court.

Earlier, Tanjung Karang MP Noh Omar had criticised the election process of the Bar.

“Their elections need to be relooked.

“There needs to be a qualified independent body conducting their elections.”

The former minister also accused the Malaysian Bar of encouraging its members to demonstrate. He was referring to the recent protest at Bukit Aman by lawyers who protested alleged police interference in their work.