The Attorney-General's Chambers is still in the process of drafting the terms of reference for the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into allegations of judicial misconduct, said a high-level source.
“Be patient. It involves a significant amount of documentation... There is a lot of paperwork involved. So we must be patient.
“I would say the terms of reference would be drawn up roughly from about five to six weeks of the cabinet announcing that the RCI would be formed,” the source told Malaysiakini.
The source also pointed out that in other countries, the setting up of a royal commission is a time-consuming process as well.
“This is not only exclusive to Malaysia. So, once again, we must be patient.
“The cabinet has made a decision and it would not backtrack on this,” added the source.
On Feb 20, Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced that the cabinet has agreed to set up the RCI to look into the allegations by Court of Appeal judge Hamid Sultan Abu Backer.
Hamid (photo) made the allegations in an affidavit filed on Feb 14 in support of lawyer Sangeet Kaur Deo's application to declare that the chief justice failed to defend the integrity and credibility of the judiciary over two alleged incidents of judicial interference.
Among others, he claimed that certain members of the judiciary have been aiding private parties to defraud the government.
Hamid had called for an RCI to investigate the matter, and refused to provide information when approached by MACC officers after his affidavit became public.
RCIs are formed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong in accordance with the Commissions of Enquiry Act.
Since Mahathir's announcement, there have been conflicting views regarding the scope of the RCI, with certain quarters claiming that it should be an exhaustive process which looks into past cases in order to restore confidence in the judiciary.
However, there are also those who feel that a protracted process could prove to be counterproductive.
During former premier Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's administration, an RCI was formed in 2008 to probe the fixing of judges.
The five-member panel had proposed that action be taken against lawyer VK Lingam, former chief justice Eusoff Chin and four others, including Mahathir.
However, until today, no action has been taken against any of the six. - Mkini
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