The Malaysian Bar - Bar Council welcomes setting up of Royal Commission on Lingam Tape

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Bar Council welcomes setting up of Royal Commission on Lingam Tape

Wednesday, 12 December 2007 07:33pm

©The Sun (Used by permission)
by Giam Say Khoon and B.Suresh Ram

PETALING JAYA (Dec 12, 2007): The Bar Council today welcomed the prime minister's announcement on the setting up of a commission of enquiry on the Lingam Tape.

Bar Council president Ambiga Sreenevasan sid in a statement although the council had hoped for a wider scope of inquiry than just the video clip, this inquiry was nevertheless a very important and necessary one.

"The terms of reference may appear at first blush to be narrow, but when properly construed gives sufficient latitude for the commission to conduct a thorough inquiry.

"We look forward to a full, and open inquiry by the Commission," she said, adding that it is now left to the commissioners to ensure that this inquiry is a meaningful one and that the procedures adopted will encourage and ensure the emergence of the truth.

"The Bar Council will be making the necessary representations to assist the commission," she said.

Parliamentary Opposition leader Lim Kit Siang expressed disappointment with the appointment of Tan Sri Haidar Mohd Noor as chairman of the Royal Commission and its restricted terms of reference.

Lim said in a statement he disagreed with the appointment of Haidar because of his role in the 1988 Judicial Crisis which saw the arbitrary and unconstitutional sacking of Tun Salleh Abas as Lord President and two Supreme Court judges, Datuk George Seah and the late Tan Sri Wan Sulaiman Pawanteh.

He also said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi should also have framed the widest and most comprehensive terms of reference for the Royal Commission with the mandate to restore national and international confidence in the independence and integrity of the judiciary.

"A Royal Commission of Inquiry with the widest ambit to restore national and international confidence in the Malaysian judiciary would be a great ally for the new Chief Justice's vow of "house-cleaning" of the judiciary," he added.