On the surface, it may not appear to be a ‘comforting number’ but the 25 deputy public prosecutors (DPPs) handling criminal appeal cases nationwide have managed to carry out their tasks effectively.

Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Nancy Shukri said the DPPs had not failed to appear for hearings and therefore, there was no disruption in proceedings involving appeal cases.

“It is their duty and the DPPs have no choice but to appear in court despite the large number of cases under their care. (As such) Distribution of duties is crucial for them to cope with the heavy workload,” she said.

She said this when asked to comment on a news report on the number of DPPs who were managing an increasing number of criminal appeal cases.

It was reported that the number of criminal appeal cases had risen by more than 300 percent due to judicial efforts to tackle backlog cases.

In 2010, the number of appeal cases was only 861 but last year, the number had risen to 2,833 cases.

Nancy was speaking to the media after officially opening the 8th Conference of Prosecutors-General and Attorneys-General of China and Asean Countries in Nusajaya today.

As a long-term effort, the number of DPPs would be increased from time to time but the minister noted that taking in new DPPs was not an easy task as there were proceedings which needed to be followed.

She said the proceedings included planning their emolument and coordinating with the department in charge of recruitment, adding that although the cases handled by them were large, the DPPs handled them well, without a hitch.

Attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail, who revealed the startling number of DPPs in the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) appellate and trial division during his speech at the Opening of the Legal Year in Putrajaya recently, said while there had been an increase of judges in the High Court and Appellate Courts, there was no comparable increase in the number of DPPs handling appeals.

“It would be useful if the AGC was made aware of court expansion plans to enable the necessary manpower adjustments to be made in advance,” he said.

- Bernama