Committee on institutional reforms to submit first recommendations in two months
KUALA LUMPUR: Calling it a mammoth task, the newly set up Institutional Reforms Committee will submit its first set of recommendations to the government within two months.
Datuk K. C. Vohrah said the committee would focus on strengthening the rule of law, identifying shortcomings and ensuring check and balance.
"We will study all of the legislations that do not accord to the rule of law," he said in a press conference here today.
He said the committee would be looking at some institutions, in which the immediate ones would be the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission, Royal Malaysian Police and Election Commission.
"We are going to interview these people who are in the departments to come and explain to us. Let's see how they are going to deal with it ... we have to look at what they have to say and look at the laws," he said.
The formation of a five-member Committee on Institutional Reforms was announced by the Council of Eminent Persons yesterday.
Other than Vohrah who is a retired judge of the Court of Appeal, the committee's lineup comprises retired judge of the Court of Appeal and Suhakam commissioner Datuk Mah Weng Kwai; president of the National Patriots Association Brig Gen (Rtd) Datuk Mohamed Arshad Raji; Tunku Abdul Rahman Professor of Law at University Malaya, Emeritus Prof Datuk Dr Shad Saleem Faruqi and National Human Rights Society (Hakam) president Datuk S. Ambiga.
Vohrah said the committee would be focusing on ensuring good governance, separation of powers as well as upholding the rule of law.
Meanwhile, asked if some of the reforms would need 2/3 majority of the parliament, Ambiga said some would need the 2/3 majority and some would just involve structural changes.
"There are possibly structural changes not just changes in legislation so we will be going to study all aspects and recommend in various cases where constitutional amendment is required," she said.
According to Ambiga, the Anti Fake News Act is among matters they would be looking into and felt that the act might be repealed in total. — Bernama