00:00Prior to 2009, the judicial process was rather simplistic in the sense that it was only based
00:07on a few provisions of the Constitution. Without getting too technical, when it comes to the
00:13appointment of ordinary Superior Court judges, the Prime Minister tenders his advice to the
00:19Yang di-Pertuan Agong upon consulting the Chief Justice and after conferring with the
00:26Conference of Rulers. This process underwent a radical shift in 2009 with the introduction
00:33of the Judicial Appointments Commission Act 2009 which established the Judicial Appointments
00:39Commission or it is most commonly referred to JAC. What I am about to share with you next
00:48are not my personal views but actual discussions that took place in the Dewan Rakyat regarding the
00:55passing of the Judicial Appointments Commission Act 2009. The need for the Judicial Appointments
01:01Commission Act 2009 were grounded on many allegations and attacks against the government.
01:08Pertinently, many members of the opposition appeared to express the sentiment that the
01:14introduction of the bill to the Judicial Appointments Commission Act 2009 was merely a
01:20cover-up for all the past appointments that had been made. I invite each and every one of you
01:27to scrutinize the handset for 16 December 2008 and 17 December 2008. Most of all, I find relevant
01:37the views of the then recently appointed Leader of the Opposition and current Prime Minister of
01:43Malaysia, Datuk Sri Anwar bin Ibrahim, who expressed strong views on the VK Linggom incident.
01:50Datuk Sri Anwar Ibrahim concluded then that the Judicial Appointments Commission Act 2009,
01:56in his view, was not enough to restore the independence of the judiciary.
02:02He went on to observe that there is a perception that persons who had decided in favour of the
02:08government were promoted. Datuk Sri Anwar Ibrahim's observation then relates directly
02:16to the fundamental aspect of judicial independence in that perception plays a big part in it.
02:24The public cannot be expected to have confidence in the judicial institution,
02:29no matter how hard its judges work. If the pervading public perception is that judges
02:36are appointed or elevated upon the favour of making decisions that by default support the
02:43government of certain business interests. When things like this happen, it is very similar to,
02:49if not worse than, the lessons in the children's parable of the boy who cried wolf. Crying wolf
02:56wantonly could backfire when no one believes you when the wolf actually arrives to eat the sheep.
03:03Apply it to us, making the irredeemable mistake of rendering one decision coloured with bias
03:11or appointing one candidate that is only chosen as a favour throws into question the integrity
03:18of the entire judiciary and none of the decisions delivered after that will engender the public
03:24confidence and trust, even if that decision is absolutely correct on the facts and the law.
03:32From 1988, it is only now that we are on the road to recovery in terms of our perception
03:39of independence. Incidentally, 15 years ago, when the Judicial Appointments Commission Act 2009
03:47was enforced, the then leader of the opposition made the comments that he did as reflected in
03:53the Hansard on the appointment of judges and judicial independence. I am certain that now,
04:00as Prime Minister, Datuk Sri Anwar Ibrahim and his government will remain true to those comments
04:08by continuing to unreservedly remain committed to upholding the cause of judicial independence.
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