Wide or narrow? Ex-judges differ on RCI's scope

Putrajaya has agreed to form a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on the judiciary but there is still no announcement on the terms of reference as yet. 

The question now concerns the scope of the RCI. Malaysiakinispeaks to three former judges regarding this.

Former Court of Appeal judge Mah Weng Kwai said the RCI should not be limited to the explosive allegations contained in an affidavit filed by a current Court of Appeal judge Hamid Sultan Abu Backer last week.

Mah, who is also a Judicial Appointments Commission member, said the RCI must also include the allegations which surfaced in the past.

"Maybe it (RCI) can go as far back as during (former High Court judge) Syed Ahmad Idid Syed Ahmad's time.

"The ultimate aim of holding the RCI is to restore public confidence in the judiciary," he told Malaysiakini.

In Syed Ahmad Idid's matter, the former High Court judge penned an anonymous letter in 1996 regarding possible abuse in relation to the then Lord President Eusoff Chin's family holidaying with lawyer VK Lingam in New Zealand.

The letter, which was sent to a select few individuals, was later leaked to the media. Instead of focusing on the allegations raised in the letter, an investigation was held to determine the identity of the whistleblower.

Following this, Syed Ahmad Idid was forced to resign.

Mah (photo) said it is crucial for the RCI to get to the bottom of all the allegations and action must be taken against the individuals concerned if wrongdoings are discovered.

"One must do justice, that is, if their names are not involved, they must be cleared. It works both ways. If the RCI finds wrongdoings, then action should be taken.

"We should reinstate confidence in the judiciary and this can be done by ensuring action is taken against those found to be responsible,” he added.

Responding to a question, Mah said judges who have retired should also not be spared with regard to the commission of a criminal act during their tenures.

"Retirement is not a defence," he stressed.

Mah still believes there are many judges with integrity on the bench but added that in any organisation, there would be a few bad hats as well.

'Ambitious RCI could be counter-productive'

Another former top judge, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the RCI's terms of reference must not be too ambitious.

"We must not forget there was an RCI before this on the 'video clip exposure' involving a telephone conversation between a lawyer and a senior judge.

"So duplicity of tasks and efforts must be avoided. Too ambitious terms may make the RCI a protracted and prolonged exercise. This could be counter-productive," he told Malaysiakini.

Based on this, the judge said the RCI's focus should be limited to Hamid's allegations.

The previous RCI in 2008 concerned the telephone conversation between lawyer Lingam and then chief judge of Malaya Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Halim in 2001 over the fixing of judges.

The five-member panel had proposed that action be taken against Lingam, former chief justice Eusoff and four others, including Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

Meanwhile, Syed Ahmad also agreed that if the terms of the new RCI are too wide then it would be a long process.

He said since Hamid's affidavit was written within a court case, it could have been sufficient to leave it within the court hearing.

"Maybe the RCI can pick up to discover the purported corruption in the allegation that lawyers, corporations and judges are working together to embezzle government funds," he told Malaysiakini.

Hamid's affidavit was filed in support of lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo's application to declare that the chief justice failed to defend the integrity of the judiciary over the alleged instances of judicial interference involving her late father Karpal Singh’s sedition case. - Mkini