Raus should not head Batu Puteh RCI, says Mahathir’s lawyer

 

Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s lawyer warns that the former prime minister may refuse to cooperate with the panel if former chief justice Raus Sharif heads the Batu Puteh RCI.

PETALING JAYA: The appointment of former chief justice Raus Sharif as head of the Batu Puteh royal commission of inquiry (RCI) is a conflict of interest, lawyer Rafique Rashid said.

Rafique, who is also former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s counsel, said this conflict stems from the tangled history between the two, when in 2017 Mahathir challenged the legality of Raus’s appointment as an additional judge of the Federal Court due to age concerns.

Rafique argued that Raus’s appointment compromises the RCI’s integrity and he should be replaced because it will affect the credibility of the panel’s findings.

“Failing which, we would be inclined to advise our client not to participate in the RCI,” he said in a statement.

On Feb 14, Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim consented to Raus leading the RCI to look into why Malaysia dropped its territorial claim to Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge.

The King also consented to the appointment of former Federal Court judge Zainun Ali as the panel’s deputy chairman.

The other members of the panel are former Universiti Malaya law faculty dean Johan Shamsuddin Sabaruddin, constitutional law and administrative law expert Faridah Jalil, legal expert Baljit Singh Sidhu, Johor state financial officer Ridha Kadir, and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency southern region director Dickson Dollah.

On Jan 24, the Cabinet established the RCI, with chief secretary to the government Zuki Ali announcing that its members would carry out their investigation “transparently, fairly and impartially to avoid any conflicts of interest”.

In 2008, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) awarded Batu Puteh to Singapore, Middle Rocks to Malaysia, and South Ledge to the state in the territorial waters in which it is located.

In 2017, Malaysia applied to the ICJ requesting an interpretation of the judgment.

In 2018, the Mahathir-led administration withdrew its application to overturn the ICJ verdict.

Last year, a special task group was established to study the case and determined that the Mahathir-led administration may have erred in withdrawing the application.

At the time, then attorney-general Idrus Harun called the government’s decision “not in order” and “improper”. - FMT