When more than 4,000 people have signed an online petition initiated by blogger-lawyer Haris Ibrahim for judicial reform, it is time for the authorities to sit up and take notice, said the DAP.

At a press conference in the Parliament lobby today, DAP veteran leader Lim Kit Siang said his party too has endorsed the petition.

"We fully support the move because we are in view that only a royal commission can thoroughly unravel the (causes of the) rot in the judiciary and reinstate public confidence in it," he said.

He also said that the cabinet-appointed panel of inquiry is not in a capacity to act on the alleged abuse of power in the judiciary, given its limited terms of reference in relation to determining the authenticity of the 'Lingam tape'.

"The panel is toothless and this is evident when the Anti-Corruption Agency has been the only (authority) doing all the work," Lim said.

He was referring to on-going investigations into a report lodged by PKR vice-president R Sivarasa (photo) last month, after party de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim released part of the tape on Sept 19.

The ACA has been briefing the three-member panel on its findings to date.

Lim also described yesterday's visit to the Bar Council premises by three police officers as an "absurd and politically motivated move".

They did not succeed in recording statements from three office-bearers about a protest march that the council had organised on Sept 26.

"The 'Walk for Justice' should be praised as it has done a great service to the country, instead of the (office-bearers being) subjected to an inquisition," he said.

Submission tomorrow

On his blog-site dubbed 'The People's Parliament', Haris explains that the petition is to appeal to the King to direct that a royal commission be created to probe the rot in the judiciary, as evidenced by revelations on the Lingam tape.

"When Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz (Sheikh Abdul Halim) responded with a 'no comment' statement through a third party, the rakyat had a sense that (he) did not respond with complete candour," writes Haris (photo).

The petition also expresses skepticism of the ability of the panel of inquiry, as it is headed by former Chief Judge of Malaya Haidar Mohd Noor.

Haidar has been implicated in the sacking of Lord President Salleh Abas in 1988 and his appointment to the panel "fortifies belief that the present government is determined that the truth in relation to the scandal never becomes known", said Haris in a posting.

The petition seeks the creation of a royal commission to:

  • inquire into all those mentioned in the Lingam tape

  • investigate court cases handled by lawyer VK Lingam and Ahmad Fairuz

  • probe the basis of appointment of judges by Ahmad Fairuz especially those mentioned in the tape

  • check the manner of file-allocation to the panels of the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court by Ahmad Fairuz during his tenure as president of the Court of Appeal and as chief justice

The deadline for signatures was noon today. The petition is to be submitted to the King tomorrow, ahead of a planned meeting of the Conference of Rulers next week.

Judicial appointments in Malaysia require royal assent. In this case, the timing also targets a reported bid by Ahmad Fairuz to seek an extension of his term which ends on Oct 31, as this is expected to be on the meeting agenda.


SPECIAL REPORT: The Lingam tape