I refer to the Malaysiakini report Inquiry kicks off with conflict of interest claims .

How can the chairperson and two members of the panel say that there are no valid reasons to recuse themselves from hearing the matter? Lawyer M Puravalen brought up matters that should have pricked the conscience of these members. The three persons named, I suppose, are all very learned in law and one need not have to teach them matters of law.

The royal commission is a body set up under an act of Parliament and members of the commission were appointed by the King. The idea of the King appointing the members is to show the members of the public that the executive, legislature and judiciary have no role to play in this royal commission of inquiry.

It is to give the notion that this body is independent and free from bias. The issue of whether it is truly independent is the subject matter of another discussion as it was the executive that recommended the members in the first place.

It now boils down to the integrity of the members themselves in that the members of the commission must be ‘whiter than white’ and beyond reproach. On such an important matter as corruption in the judiciary which they are now investigating, the panel members of this royal commission must never forget the rules of natural justice. Need I tell then that ‘No man must be a judge in his own cause’ and that ‘Justice must not only be done but must be seen to be done’.

Can all three members in question in all honesty tell the Malaysian public that they are not judging a matter that may directly or even remotely involve them? Can they in all honesty vouch for their integrity when issues such as likelihood of bias and conflict of interest have now been raised against them? The word I chose to emphasise is ‘likelihood’ and not actual proof of bias or conflict of interest.

Can the Malaysian public see why no objections were made against Professor Dr Khoo Kay Peng? The answer is so obvious - he is just not involved in the issue at all.

Whatever the outcome may be, the decision of the commission is already tainted whether they find VK Lingam or the former chief justice culpable or not. This is hardly an act to clean the judiciary. In a matter of such importance, I would imagine that they could have recruited distinguished and eminent retired judges from Commonwealth countries to join the panel.