Should the Bar Council convene an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to reaffirm the supremacy of the Federal Constitution and the application of the common law?

This question is at the heart of a week-long poll on the Malaysian Bar website that has been running since Sunday.

Asked if the 13,000-strong legal professional body is seriously mulling an EGM, Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan said the poll results would determine the decision.

"I understand that a large number (of those who have voted) appear to want an EGM, but let's wait for developments over the next few days," she said when contacted yesterday, adding that the council would make a decision at a meeting next Saturday.

She said the proposal for the EGM was not mooted by the council, but by members.

So far, 400 members - of 4,500 members who registered to use the website - have cast their votes, according to the webmaster. The results will only be made known when the poll ends.

There is already a strong sentiment among lawyers in wanting the Bar Council to take a stronger stand on a series of recent issues involving the judiciary.

These including filling the post of the Chief Judge of Malaya which has been vacant for eight months and Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim's suggestion that the use of English common law should be replaced.

Subsequently Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail suggested that the common law could be replaced with Syariah law, drawing the support from the Minister in the Prime Minister 's Department Dr Mohd Abdullah Zin.

A report on this on the Bar website has drawn 59 comments within four days - a record for the website. The report was posted last Friday.

Most of those who posted comments disagreed with the minister and the chief justice on this issue.

'Time for change'

Some lawyers have gone a step ahead in an internal forum on the website, questioning whether the time has came for the chief justice to step down.

The common mood was that "it is time for change", although a small number disagreed about asking Ahmad Fairuz to step down since he is slated to retire in October.

When contacted, a lawyer noted that proposal for an EGM is not just about reasserting the position of the Federal Constitution and the need for the application of the common law.

"It is about sending a strong signal and a wake-up call that we need a functioning judiciary in order for us to uphold the constitution," said the lawyer who requested anonymity.

"The judiciary should focus on its role instead of meddling in the affairs of the legislature (to decide on whether common law should be replaced). It should not forget its role is to interpret the law."

Ambiga agreed there are strong sentiments on the issues, saying these are likely to be discussed if there is an EGM.