I strongly disagree with Chief Justice Mohammed Dzaiddin Abdullah that the open disputes among judges should be "settled among themselves".

The recent incident where a judge publicly criticised his superior in the judgement of an unrelated case should be of grave concern for all Malaysians and foreigners with interest in the country. It demonstrates the utter indiscipline among judges, and indicates something very wrong within the judiciary which Dzaiddin heads.

The judiciary is not a secret society like the Freemasons or Mafia. In a modern and civilised polity, the judiciary is publicly accountable which means it has to convince the public of its own incorruptibility, impartiality and emotional stability before it can hope to gain respectability and credibility.

Otherwise, the judiciary is merely a sentencing department of the executive or the prime minster, as in the case of former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim.

To be sure, we cannot prejudge who is right or wrong in the recent case.

Apparently, it was R K Nathan who is to be blamed for his outburst and abuse of power, but a more thorough investigation is still needed to ascertain the root cause or causes of the abnormal outburst of emotion. A judicial tribunal with open hearing should be set up in this case to convince the public and the world that there is no cover-up whatsoever.

Not less important is a comprehensive and convincing psychological health clearance of all judges to ensure that all of them are emotionally stable so that justice will not be perverted by the factor of psychological health of any of them.

Moreover, there is also a need for all judges to publicly declare their income, wealth and assets to convince the public and the world that they are clean. Travelling and entertainment expenses of judges, both for private and public functions, should be made available for public inspection.

To lead by example, the Chief Justice himself should first declare his income, wealth and asset to the public via the Parliament. The Chief Justice should also make available detailed accounts of his travelling and entertainment expenses in at least the last five years, for public scrutiny.