Friday, February 15, 2008

Stopping the Rot


(Source: KLRCA website)

I truly believe in the need for an independent judiciary, judicial integrity and all that jazz. I also believe that judicial rot is the root cause of all that is wrong in this country today - rampant corruption, rising crime rate, blatant disregard and disrespect for the rule of law, etc., etc. Therefore, I strongly support DAP advisor Lim Kit Siang's call that the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Lingam Tape "must be fully conscious of its historic role and opportunity to end the rot in the judiciary" and subpoena former High Court judge Dato Syed Ahmad Idid (photo) as a "necessary process to exorcise the rot and corruption of the judicial past for the Malaysian judiciary to turn over a new leaf". (Read his blog 'Lingam Tape RCI - Subpoena Syed Ahmad Idid', here)

In December 2006, the New Sunday Times published an interview with Syed Ahmad Idid, who resigned in 1996 after he wrote an anonymous letter accusing several judges of corruption. (Read my earlier blog 'Battling Corruption', here)

Investigations into his allegations were closed after the then Attorney-General Mohtar Abdullah said they were 'baseless'.

Datuk Syed Ahmad Idid never spoke about the incident until the 2006 NST interview in which he disclosed that the late Tan Sri Mohtar had told him in 2000 that he was forced to do what he did.

"I asked him, 'Was there a pistol at your neck when you did what you did to me?'. He replied, 'No, it was a cannon'," Datuk Syed Ahmad Idid said.

He didnt say whose 'cannon' it was, but we now have a pretty good idea, eh?

9 comments:

  1. This Syed Ahmad Idid is a man of intergrity, and have the courage to uphold justice , then in God's name volunteer to tell the truth ....

    otherwise, you Syed Ahmad will have died for nothing ..... and have wasted your life ....

    Syed Ahmad Idid what are you afraid of mere humanbeings or your Lord ....

    go tell the truth and close the your part of the Chapter ....

    ReplyDelete
  2. you think the haidar fella gonna let the skeleton out of the cupboard. remember his hands are literally filled with "blood" for his role in the demolition of the judiciary.
    another charade.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Capt.,
    I wonder if we will ever get to read Datuk Syed's "poison pen" letter. I used to ask for a copy from the late MGG Pillai (May God Bless his soul) when I met him a few years before his demise but he said it was an OSA document. But from what he told me, I'm sure it will be an interesting read.

    Maybe, now, is a good time as any to share the contents of letter with the rakyat.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Without doubt, the judiciary must be cleaned 1st! It has to be revamped!and sack for all who are implicated or even stained! Otherwise democracy will colapse for sure, when everything has got a price tag! The result of one MEGALOMANIA IN OUR HISTORY IS ENOUGH!, let's not create another with even lesser grey capacity; such megalomania would be total disaster for the nation!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Captain,
    The cannon at the late Tan Sri Mohtar was nothing more than a dummy. If only he dared to ignore the dummy of a cannon, nothing would have happened. It was him playing to the tune that led to the destruction of the judiciary's credibility.
    C4s were not available yet at that time.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Captain,

    There are no cannons pointing at the judge in this story, but it could easily reflect the sorry state of the institution passing off for the Malaysian judiciary today.

    At the height of a political corruption trial, the prosecuting attorney attacked a witness. "Isn't it true," he bellowed, "that you accepted $50,000 to compromise this case?"

    The witness stared out the window as though he hadn't hear the question.

    "Isn't it true that you accepted $50,000 to compromise this case?" the lawyer repeated.

    The witness still did not respond.

    Finally, the judge leaned over and said, "Sir, please answer the question."

    "Oh," the startled witness said, "I thought he was talking to you."

    Cheers.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Capt,

    So many secrets we try to uncover.

    Will the 'Poison Pen' letter be just as elusive as the four 'MOT' letters?

    While we wait for the good men (& women) to 'reveal' themselves, the Rot runs its tendrils ever deeper into this nation.

    Ain't posting as much as I want to but am plotting off-line to compensate.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Alo Bang: You are right on that score: without respect for the rule of law and judicial institutions we are no different than Pashtun herdsmen in Waziristan dispensing that strange brand of justice by bartering women in settling disputes. Here in Bolehland we trade away our future generation. Our our rights. And our national security. This rot has got to stop.

    ReplyDelete
  9. capt.in the 90s, in my home town, a rather well known thug murdered someone. His brother was rather well to do and the whole town said he would escape the hanging notwithstanding the murder had witnesses! Indeed he escaped! from that time, I didn't believe ALL THE PARTIES involved in such cases!! MALAYSIA BOLEH!! SEMUANYA ADA HARGA!!!

    ReplyDelete

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