Remove public prosecutorial role from AG: Malaysian Bar

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Bar urged the new government to remove the public prosecutorial role from the Attorney-General, saying it is a necessary step to strengthen the independence of public prosecutors.
Its president George Varughese said it is crucial to separate the office of the Attorney-General from the office of the Director of Public Prosecution, with the Attorney General only acting as adviser to the government, and a separate Director of Public Prosecution making decisions on matters of prosecution.
In a statement today, he said it will promote public confidence in the office of the Director of Public Prosecution and the prospect or appearance of bias would be removed.
"At present, the Attorney-General of Malaysia has two separate and distinct roles under the Federal Constitution. He is both the principal legal adviser to the government, and he is also the Public Prosecutor. As the Public Prosecutor, the Attorney-General is required to act independently and impartially, and to act as the guardian of the public interest, uninfluenced by any political considerations.
"He thus finds himself in an unenviable and arduous position of conflict of interest from time to time, when the interest of his client , the government of the day and may not fully coincide with the public interest. Past experience has shown that such situations would arise not infrequently, such as when it is recommended that a public official or politician be prosecuted for an alleged offence," he added.
George said for now, a new Attorney-General with the requisite qualifications and capability has to be appointed without any delay.
He said it is critical because the Attorney-General is the principal legal adviser to the government.
"Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad announced yesterday that the country no longer has an Attorney-General at the moment, and that names are being considered to determine the suitability of the candidates.
"However, it is unclear if Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali's services have been terminated, or whether he has taken a leave of absence in light of the serious allegation that he had hidden evidence of wrongdoings.In either scenario, the rule of law demands that due process be adhered to, and be accorded to, the former Attorney-General," he said.
He said in order for law reform to take place as a matter of priority and free from the shackles of the past decades, race, religion or gender cannot and must not form any part of the criteria when appointing the new Attorney-General.
"The new Attorney-General should be a career lawyer and not a politician-lawyer, uninvolved in partisan politics, and widely seen and accepted as independent and able to implement law reforms of the new government impartially," he said. — Bernama