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©The
Star (Used by permission)
by Raphael Wong
PUTRAJAYA: Newly-appointed Chief Justice Datuk Abdul
Hamid Mohamad has vowed to “do what he honestly believes to be right, as best he
can” to improve the public’s perception of the judiciary.
In his inaugural speech, he said that his appointment was a heavy burden, more
so during a “challenging time” now when public perceptions of the judiciary were
disturbing.
Abdul Hamid said that such negative perceptions did not mean they were all true
but had formed and spread over time.
“We cannot brush them aside. To the judiciary, the fact that such negative
perceptions exist is sufficient for us to take them seriously,” he said, at his
appointment ceremony as Chief Justice at the Palace of Justice yesterday.
Abdul Hamid described the judiciary as the “last frontier of the nation” saying
that no matter what people thought about other branches of the government, if
they had confidence in the integrity and the effectiveness of the courts, civil
society would be continued and law and order maintained.
“When the people no longer have confidence in the courts, there will be chaos,”
he said.
It was now up to the judiciary to act fast and correct the perception, Abdul
Hamid said, adding that the only effective way was for all judges, officers and
court staff to work hard, honestly and transparently.
“We have to revive public confidence, by showing results, which by themselves
will negate the perceptions,” he said.
Abdul Hamid said he also could not entirely fault the judges for the negative
perceptions as one of the factors that led to these problems was the tremendous
increase in the number of cases and their complexity.
Praising them for being committed and hardworking, he said the judges had to be
single-handedly involved throughout the proceedings, from trying the case,
recording the notes of evidence right up to researching and writing grounds of
judgment.
He said he would not compromise on corruption and appealed for the Bar Council's
cooperation to discipline its members while he did his part for the judiciary.
“In this regard, I would like to draw the attention of lawyers that, from my
observations, there is hardly any allegation of corruption or wrongdoing
involving a judge or an officer of the court in which at least one lawyer is not
involved,” he said.
Abdul Hamid said he realised that his term of office was a brief one but added:
“even if, by the will of God I were to occupy the office for only one day,
during that one day, I am determined to do what I honestly believe to be right,
as best I can.”
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