In his maiden speech in parliament today, Zaid Ibrahim (BN-Kota Bahru) called for the Federal Constitution to be amended in order to restore the power of the judiciary.

"If we have faith in legal sovereignty, we should therefore amend the Federal Constitution so that judicial power could be restored," he said when debating the motion of thanks to the royal address.

Zaid, a senior lawyer and Kelantan Umno deputy chief, felt that the role of the courts has diminished following the 1988 judicial crisis.

In that year, attacks on the judiciary by the executive reached a new height with the removal of Lord President Salleh Abas. This was soon followed by amendments to the constitution which limited the powers of the judiciary, including the rights to review some of the government's decisions.

Zaid said that "the amendments made to the Federal Constitution in 1988 had undermined the power of the court from acting as a tool of justice to merely making decisions on matters related to the law."

The whole exercise, he added, ensured that the executive was granted excessive power.

Mere government staff

Judicial review, he pointed out, is a right of the court and should not be abolished.

"Nowadays, we have given too much power to the executive, so much so that their decision is treated as final and could not be challenged in court," the MP said in his 20-minute speech.

He added "it is now clear that the court no longer has the power it had before the 1988 amendment."

Zaid, who owns one of the biggest legal firms in the country, also called for transparency to be upheld in the promotion of judges in order to gain public confidence in legal sovereignty.

"In reality, the public perceives judges and the judiciary as government staff and not a free constitutional institution. One day, we may cry for justice and the court's protection and when that day comes, we will want a impartial court with full authority for sure, as well as judges imbued with integrity and responsibility," he stressed.

A united Malaysia

Touching on Malay unity in the country, Zaid described it as a "challenge" because of their political alignment within Umno and PAS.

He said it was unfortunate that for the Malays, believing in a simple religion has become so complicated because of their political differences.

The government, he also claimed, lacked the political will to build a united Malaysia "although we should all be thankful that we are living harmoniously together".

Elaborating, he said the Malays and non-Malays are different in so many ways including their style of dressing, choices of books to read or school and their different interests in sports.

"Even among the parliamentarians, we also took our oath in different ways. Some raised their right hand, some didn't - even though the rule is clear," Zaid cited as an example.

The vocal politician also pointed out that although Malaysia should be proud of her economic achievements, there are a few "clear failures" such as the Perwaja steel mega project, the Bakun dam project and the latest water privatisation to Puncak Niaga.

Anwar's plight

Meanwhile, Kamarudin Jaffar (PAS-Tumpat) criticised the Election Commission (EC) for conducting the recent general election in a "dirty, chaotic, tainted and lawless" manner.

He alleged the chaotic polls was the "result" of a plan to ensure a victory for the BN.

He also suggested that the EC be dissolved and restructured, adding that redelineation exercises be conducted by a special commission and that automatic voter registration be introduced.

The PAS leader also urged parliament to recognise a resolution adopted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) on April 23 in Mexico concerning the health of jailed ex-deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim.

Among other things, the IPU has urged the Malaysian Parliament to present an accurate picture of Anwar's health.

Kamarudin also urged Parliament to recognise the recommendation by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) for the setting up of a media council .