PKR has criticised the government's choice of former Chief Judge of Malaya Haidar Mohd Noor to chair a
 
 <a href="/news/72824" target="_blank">
 three member panel
 </a>
 
 that will investigate the Lingam tape's authenticity.


 "(Haidar) clearly has as a bad track record as exhibited in the 1988 judicial crisis," party secretary-general Khalid Ibrahim told a press conference at PKR headquarters in Kuala Lumpur today.


 In the 1988 scandal, former Lord President Salleh Abas was sacked after approving a letter by senior judges to the King, in which the then premier Dr Mahathir Mohamad was criticised for culling the judiciary. A tribunal was brought against Salleh on several grounds of misconduct.


 <img align="left" height="64" hspace="5" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/47/22b8fb2addd71a76c72e1a6db66262c6.jpg" width="64"/>
 Haidar, who was then the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court, had allegedly played a key role in preventing an emergency Supreme Court sitting to hear an interim stay by Salleh against the tribunal. The application was rejected and Salleh was sacked soon after.


 In addition, Khalid said Haidar's position as chairperson of CIMB group's nominee committee also compromised his judgement.


 The chief executive of CIMB is Nazir Razak, the younger brother of deputy prime minister Najib Abdul Razak. It was Najib who announced the panel last week.


 Haidar is also chairperson of Bumiputra-Commerce Bank Bhd (BCB).


 Khalid added that Haidar is also the trustee of the Perdana Leadership Foundation, which is under the patronage of former premier Mahathir.


 In 2002, Haidar was also one of three Federal Court judges who unanimously dismissed Anwar Ibrahim's appeal against his conviction on charges of corruption and six-year prison sentence made in 1998.


 "The government does not seem sensitive to potential conflicts of interest in creating such a panel," said Khalid.


 
 
 Nazri under fire
 
 


 <img align="left" height="215" hspace="5" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/98/3604d7ed1b8c2312b7d4e91586035f10.jpg" width="320"/>
 Khalid said PKR concured with the Bar Council in calling for a royal commission to get to the bottom of the scandal.


 Despite the criticisms, PKR vice-president R Sivarasa, who was also at the press conference, said that the party would co-operate with the investigative panel once it is convened.


 "What we pointed out earlier are the limitations in the panel. We see that the system has major weaknesses. There is too much power in the hands of the prime minister.


 Meanwhile, Khalid described de-facto law minister Nazri Abdul Aziz as "cowardly" for issuing a denial on behalf of Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim that the latter was not at the other end of the Lingam tape.


 "The party found that the responses by (Nazri) was cowardly for a minister responsible over the country's legal affairs.


 "It is as though Nazri wanted to protect Ahmad Fairuz from the scandal involving the fixing of court judges," added Khalid.


 On Sunday, Nazri
 
 <a href="/news/72740" target="_blank">
 said
 </a>
 
 that Ahmad Fairuz was not at the other end of a recorded conversation with VK Lingam, adding that he was contacted by Ahmad Fairuz to issue the denial.


 The eight-minute video, which revolves around the promotion of the judiciary top posts, was
 
 <a href="/news/72579" target="_blank">
 released
 </a>
 
 by the Anwar last Wednesday.


 Criticising the denial, Khalid said that Nazri should have investigated the Chief Justice for being the beneficiary of the fixing scandal.


 "Nazri should have compelled the agencies he is charged with to investigate Ahmad Fairuz, as well as Lingam; not question the authenticity of the tape," he said.


 
 
 Protecting whistle blower
 
 


 Khalid added that Nazri's charge that the Bar Council was being pro-opposition was "unprofessional" and "immature behavior coming from cabinet minister."


 Yesterday, Nazri had described the march by over 2,000 lawyers in Putrajaya as conduct unbecoming.


 "There's no need (for such a judicial commission) as there is no crisis in our judiciary. No crisis, no problems. I don't see any scandal," Nazri was quoted as saying by the media.


 <img align="left" height="204" hspace="5" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/96/e1817a3faf2cd868ad7bd82ee4a7287b.jpg" width="160"/>
 Contacted later, Sivarasa said he does not expect any problems in submitting either the edited eight-minute tape or the full 14-minute version, as evidence in court.


 PKR said it released the edited version to protect the whistle blower.


 "I think there would be no legal obstacle. The court of law requires evidence as in how the process of editing is done. And we can still protect the whistle blower," he said.


 <img height="419" hspace="5" src="http://mk-cdn.mkini.net/97/7a7b97ef490a3247be6bb5ab84d3007a.gif" width="435"/>

The Lingam tape
 

Citing conflicts of interest, an opposition party says the former Chief Judge of Malaya should not chair the three-man investigative panel into the Lingam tape.

Haidars appointment to panel objected

~RM12

Share

ABOUT

DIGITAL NETWORK

TERMS OF USE

GENERAL LINE

SUBSCRIPTION / TECH SUPPORT

EDITORIAL

LOCATION

RSS FEEDS

DAILY NEWS DIGEST