An emergency motion tabled by the opposition to debate on the setting up of a royal commission to probe the 1988 judicial crisis was shot down in the Dewan Rakyat today.

In rejecting the motion tabled by Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (PKR-Permatang Pauh), Deputy Speaker Dr Yusof Yacob said although the motion was of public interest it was however not urgent.

"The matter has been raised before, it is not new," he added.

In the motion, Wan Azizah noted that it is vital to set up a 'truly independent' royal commission to probe the crisis because by the sacking of the judges, the authority of judges in exercising their power and judicial independence has been questioned by the public.

She said it is essential to find out the root causes as to who, why and how the judicial crisis happened and who should be held responsible for it.

"This judicial crisis was also brought to the attention of the United Nations, Malaysian Bar Council, International Bar Association and International Commission of Jurists who had viewed this crisis as the most shocking in the judiciary system of Malaysia," she added

Loss of faith

In 1988, then premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad had former Lord President Salleh Abas tried by a special tribunal on charges of misconduct, for questioning constitutional amendments that seriously eroded the powers of the judiciary.

Two of five supreme court judges - George Seah and Wan Sulaiman Pawanteh - who had ruled that the tribunal was convened unconstitutionally were sacked along with Salleh ( left ), after being found guilty of misconduct by a tribunal of six judges, including one each from Singapore and Sri Lanka.

Some have described the dismissal of the top judges from the Supreme Court - then the country's highest court, now renamed as Federal Court - as Malaysia's darkest hours in its judicial history.

Three weeks ago, Salleh broke his silence and supported the Bar Council's call in reviewing the 1988 judicial crisis.

Meanwhile, Wan Azizah said it is important to reveal what happened in the past because the public had lost their faith in the judiciary.

"If the setting up of the royal commission is delayed, members of the public will have a negative impression about the judiciary and this will affect the entire democratic system in our country," she added.

Yesterday, BN MP Zaid Ibrahim also pleaded for an investigation into the crisis. However, the government has ruled this out.