Lawyer: Terminate services of Apandi immediately

PETALING JAYA: There should be no further delay in terminating the services of Attorney General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali who has been forced to go on leave, says Lawyers for Liberty (LFL).

According to LFL adviser N. Surendran, it has been expressly announced that Apandi does not enjoy the confidence of the new Prime Minister and his Government.

“Under Article 145(5), the AG holds office at the pleasure of the King. This means that the AG can be removed or terminated whenever the PM advises the King to do so,” said the lawyer in a statement yesterday.

Surendran said there was no requirement for a tribunal to remove the AG, nor a need for an enquiry in order to terminate his services.

He explained that this was reinforced by Article 132(2A) which states that a member of the judicial and legal service holds office at the pleasure of the King.

“In short, the AG’s services can be terminated at any time by the King by virtue of Article 145(5), if the PM advises His Majesty to do so. Apandi has no legal recourse when his services are terminated; he must go. The best thing he can do now is to quit honourably,” Surendran added.

As for the appointment of a new AG, Article 145(1) provides that the King shall do so “on the advice of the Prime Minister”.

According to Surendran, this should be read with Article 40(1A), by virtue of which the King is bound to act upon the advice of the PM or Cabinet.

“Any further delay in appointing a new AG is bound to hold up or disrupt the important institutional and legal reforms expected by the people, as well as the widely expected prosecutions in the 1MDB scandal,” he said.

“As things stand, Malaysia has no functioning AG. This situation cannot be allowed to continue,” he cautioned.