PETALING JAYA: The Parliamentary Select Committee can review Latheefa Koya's newly appointed position as the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner, but it will have no legal affect on the appointment itself, says lawyer Syahredzan Johan.
Syahredzan said Parliamentary committees are supposed to provide checks and balances for executive action, but not to approve or legitimise it.
"What the Major Public Appointments Committee can do is to review Lat’s (Latheefa) appointment after it has been made, to see whether it is proper and whether she is suitable, etc.
"It will have no legal effect on the appointment itself of course, but it's a review of government action," he tweeted on his Twitter account on late Tuesday (June 4) night.
Syahredzan, who is also DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang's political secretary, said this following criticisms over the manner of Latheefa's appointment as the new MACC chief.
Syahredzan added that there was perhaps also a major misconception about what Parliamentary committees are supposed to do.
He said people seemed to think that the executive must go to the Committees before making a decision, such as a major appointment.
"That's not how it's supposed to work," he said.
Syahredzan said if the Committee finds that the appointment is unsuitable, and although it will not affect the appointment itself, the government would need to justify its decision.
"That's how legislative oversight is supposed to work," he said.
Latheefa’s appointment came with a two-year contract effective June 1.
