Reading former Lord President Salleh Abas' account made me reflect on a few things.

First, no dictator — then, now and in the future — could perpetrate heinous acts except with participation, whether active or reluctant, of (not only fellow judges) but also key government figures and heads (or shall I say figure heads?) of our institutions and establishment.

Faced with the juggernaut of executive displeasure, Salleh was prepared to lose everything — the Lord President's post included — rather than his principles and beliefs and paid the price for it. But would most others? Definitely no!

One just cannot learn too soon that among our establishment elites, the most useful thing about principle is the boast about fighting for it rather than live up to it, and that it can readily be sacrificed on the altar of expedience.

Money, power, position, respectability, properties, corporate interests, and honorific titles that come from that niche within the establishment are the only things that matter and deserve protection — not some abstract notions of fair play, justice, right and wrong that belong to dreamers. (Just count how many Tan Sri and Datuk whose integrity have been impugned, some even prosecuted for crimes!)

If ever they were ever struck by conscience, it invariably is a bad one, and even then fleetingly.

Salleh's travail then is an indictment on the collective moral calibre of the leaders of our political corporate and cultural structure. Unless this improves, the nation may materially prosper but it can never be great.

Even Salleh must remember with contrition that when recourse to the Privy Council was abolished as colonial legacy, so was recourse to British sense of fair play and justice that he deprived himself of.

It is unfortunate that in rejecting colonial legacies in the interest of mobilising the masses on nationalism, we have rejected all the good intangible aspects of these legacies including the fairness of British justice, the independence of judiciary, etc., the values of which are carried by their language that has also been relegated to oblivion.

Without these values being infused among the younger people, who will be the leaders of the future, how far can this nation go?

Now the last vestige of colonial legacy that is good — the separation of state from religion and a secular constitution — is threatened with removal.

I just cannot understand how people can on one hand clamour for independence of judiciary and human rights and on the other for hudud or Islamisation of the constitution oblivious to the inconsistency.

Leaders (both within the power structure and those outside) who preach one direction to galvanise the masses' support move hypocritically in the opposite direction in their private concerns.

They hedge their position. The wealth amassed is used to purchase properties in UK, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Their children study in these countries. They have mastered the English language to win international acclaim in international forums. When it is convenient — as in the case when they were caught for bringing into the country too much currency — they feigned ignorance of the language as an excuse for not knowing or understanding the ruling!

So what can we expect in the future direction of our country? Without quality education for the ordinary people, and less hypocrisy and more honesty in our thinking and culture especially among our elites — not much, unfortunately. A independent judiciary is important because judges are referees of all disputes on rights and obligations.

If you still believe in secular and common law and want an independent judiciary, you get judges from the ranks of lawyers from private practice who are knowledgeable in their field of law and who are already wealthy and who now care more for distinction of doing justice than securing corporate positions on retirement or making more money.

You get judges who have a strong command in the English language, who read their law books during bedtime and who have no problem in writing lucid judgments. You get people of independent mind and character, who believe in only one standard — excellence.

You amend the constitution such that a judge cannot be removed by either prime minister or king — except for misconduct and even for that, it must be tried by an independent tribunal from Commonwealth judges or retired ones not selected by our government.

If you don't believe in secular common law but Islamic and hudud, then you appoint from the ranks of ulama (Islamic scholars).

There is simply no two ways about things.