Only the Agong can decide whether the report by the Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into the death of DAP political aide Teoh Beng Hock can be made public.

NONE Panel head James Foong said this after submitting the RCI’s 124-page report to the Agong at his palace this morning.

Another copy will be submitted to the Prime Minister’s Office in Putrajaya this afternoon. 

The five panel members presented their findings at 10.30am to Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, who had a 30-minute audience with them.

The RCI commenced gathering evidence from Feb 14, 2011 and ended its proceedings on May 18, 2011.

A total of 70 witnesses testified, and 19,200 notes of proceedings were recorded, said Foong.

NONE Foong (left) also said 256 exhibits were accepted as evidence, while there were 750 pages of submissions by the Malaysian Bar, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) and the conducting officers.

"The commissioners completed the report on June 15, and the decision in this matter was unanimous," he told a press conference without disclosing the contents of the report.

"The report also consists of recommendations made to the MACC as it is part of the terms of reference. It is up to the government to decide on whether or not to adopt the proposals made," he said.

Foong said any matter pertaining to the commission should be addressed to the Director-General, Legal Affairs Division, Prime Minister's Department, Level 7, Bangunan Hal Ehwal Undang-Undang, Precinct 3, Pusat Pentadbiran Kerajaan Persekutuan, 62502 Putrajaya.

azlan Foong held the press conference with the other panel members - former Federal Court judge Abdul Kadir Sulaiman, former Court of Appeal judge T Selventhiranathan, and Penang Hospital’s senior consultant forensic pathologist Dr Bhupinder Singh and Cyberjaya University College of Medical Science’s dean and consultant forensic psychiatrist Prof Dr Mohamed Hatta Shaharom.

The panel head said although the report was due on June 25, the commission had managed to have it ready and thanked the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for granting an audience.

“We would like to thank the lawyers from the Bar Council led by Christopher Leong, the conducting officers Amarjeet Singh, Awang Armadajaya Awang Mahmud and Kwan Li Sa, and MACC counsel Muhammad Shafee Abdullah,” he said.

Circumstances leading to Teoh's death

“There are many others behind the scenes who have assisted us in the inquest, whom we could not name one by one, but we would also like to thank them,” he said.

azlan Teoh was found dead on July 16, 2009, on the fifth floor service corridor of Plaza Masalam in Shah Alam. The Selangor MACC then had its office on Level 14 of the building.

He had been questioned overnight as a witness on alleged irregularities into the disbursement of Selangor government funds by his employer, Ean Yong Hian Wah.

Ean Yong was cleared of any wrongdoing during the RCI proceedings.

The irony surrounding Teoh’s death was that he was supposed to register his marriage with fiancee Soh Cher Wei on July 16, 2009, the day he died.

azlan Five pathologists including two foreigners - family-appointed Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand and Dr Peter Vanezis, who was appointed by the MACC - were among the witnesses who testified, including former Selangor MACC deputy chief Hishamuddin Hashim.

An inquest into Teoh's death had returned an open verdict, leading to the government's establishment of the RCI to look into the circumstances of his death, as well as the MACC's interrogation procedures.

DAP wants PM to make RCI report public