Keyakinan Rakyat merosot akibat putar belit Pendakwa Raya
A-G’s Gobbledegook Undermines Public Confidence

The Attorney-General’s farcical statement on the assault injuries suffered by Anwar Ibrahim while in police custody is an attempt to hoodwink the Malaysian public. For all his gobbledegook, he has not shed any light on who actually hit Anwar.

Malaysians are baffled over the shroud of secrecy surrounding the assault and the failure to make public the official reports prepared by purportedly independent investigating teams.

Admitting - that too, three and a half months after the assault - that police officers caused the injuries is to state the obvious. There has never been any doubt in the minds of Malaysians about that. Who else could have had access to Anwar, who was locked up in the heart of our security system in Bukit Aman?

Stating that there are inconsistencies in the forensic report requiring further explanation is not good enough reason to withhold the various reports from the public. The Malaysian public has a right to see these reports now. They would like to know what these inconsistencies are. Now that they are aware that police have “neutralised” and “turned over” witnesses in the past, Malaysians are apprehensive about the “further explanation” the A-G is seeking.
 
The public cannot understand why statements from senior officials have not yet been recorded. They cannot understand why the Home Affairs Minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamad, and the Inspector General of Police, Rahim Noor, have not yet been interviewed. Since Anwar is no ordinary Malaysian, isn’t it obvious that senior police officers and the top brass in the Home Ministry would have been involved? It is elementary to conclude that these officials would have had easy access to Anwar while he was in their custody. They should have been questioned right from the start.

Malaysians find it hard to accept the police are unable to identify the person or persons responsible for assaulting Anwar. The assault did not take place in an open crowded space like Dataran Merdeka or Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, where assailants could have mingled with the crowd and then fled. It took place in a maximum security area, with access limited to specific officers, who can be easily identified.

Our police are noted for solving many crimes all over the country with hardly any clues to start with; they have been praised for their professionalism - it is absurd that they are unable to solve this ‘mystery’, which took place, as it were, in their backyard. Surely the entire police force did not have access to Anwar in his cell on the night of 20 September 1998.

The Attorney General once again promises the Malaysian public: “I, as Public Prosecutor, will not hesitate to consent to the institution of prosecution against any individual proved to have committed or abetted the commission of such offence.”

His words sound hollow and shallow in the light of his previous brave words uttered with so much passion and determination on 15 March 1996, when he was probing the poison-pen letter that contained 112 serious allegations against 12 judges  - a letter that defamed the judiciary.

He thundered then:
“This investigation is aimed at striking at the venomous elements who are out to discredit the Judiciary and subvert justice in our beloved country.

“As Attorney-General and Public Prosecutor, it is my duty and responsibility to ensure that the judiciary and the legal profession be cleansed of these treacherous elements who, by their vile, insidious, devious, and scurrilous allegation in this pamphlet had sought to undermine the integrity of the judiciary and the administration of justice in the country.

“Today is the Ides of March. But unlike that fateful day in ancient Rome where the brutish beasts succeeded in killing Caesar, today we launch this pre-emptive strike at these conspirators and Insya Allah, we will ferret them out, whoever they are, and bring them to justice.”

After all that hot air, the issue fizzled out without so much as a squeak from the A-G. Even the passion is gone. It’s a great pity he is not displaying the same determination in ferreting out those responsible - and identifying the chain of command - that led to Anwar Ibrahim’s black eye, which will remain a black mark on the administration of justice in this country. Instead, we are fed with half-baked statements that insult the intelligence of Malaysians.

It is time the A-G realises that he no longer enjoys the confidence of the Malaysian public. Aliran therefore calls on him to resign immediately and not to waste taxpayers’ money by beating around the bush. The Home Minister and the IGP should accept responsibility for this shameful episode and step down immediately to save the nation from more embarrassment. We also call upon the government to disband the police investigation team and to set up an independent Commission of Inquiry to uncover the truth.

The nation must not be shamed by the antics of a few.

P Ramakrishnan
President
6 January 1999