Johor Ruler: Don’t let your family suffer due to your life of crime

JOHOR BARU: Never get involved in drugs or any other criminal activities, says Johor Ruler Sultan Ibrahim Ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar.

“Always think of your loved ones, who will have to suffer when you are in a lock-up,” he said.Referring to the case of Chong Yun Fak, who was granted clemency last month after three decades on death row, the Johor Ruler hoped that the 63-year-old would appreciate the new lease on life given to him and never be involved in crime again.

He said it was time for people like Chong to help contribute towards the betterment of society after being given a second chance.

Sultan Ibrahim said he found out about the case after it was brought to his attention by Skudai assemblywoman Marina Ibrahim, who informed the Ruler of Chong’s case.

“I told her that 37 years is a long time for a person to be in prison.

“He also has stage four cancer,” he said, adding that he signed Chong’s clemency after being briefed about his sentence by the Pardons Board.

Chong was caught with about 220g of heroin in 1987 and sentenced to death in 1992. Last month, he finally walked out a free man due to the royal pardon.

Geha Bodhi Care Centre chairman Lam Kai Cheong, who deals with inmates from almost all prisons in Peninsula Malaysia, said he had known Chong for more than 20 years.

“He attended our Buddhism talks during our visits to the Kajang prison,” he said, describing Chong as a man of few words.

“He was the longest-serving inmate that I know. Some of the cases are usually granted clemency within 13 or 15 years, so even I was shocked to hear about his sudden release,” he added.

Lam, whose association has about 30 volunteers, said they would visit male and female convicts nationwide.

He explained that they would usually need to get permission from the counselling or religious unit of the prison’s department before meeting a prisoner.

“We provide an avenue for the inmates to talk about themselves. Over time, we become close with them as we are like their family, visiting them almost weekly.

“Some of the inmates even write me letters, sharing about their daily life in prison. Sometimes, I get up to 16 letters in just one day,” he said.

He had also visited Chong since his release last month.

Lam, who has helped Chong’s family in drafting the plea for clemency, hoped that the Pardons Board could be more transparent and provide a reply whenever an appeal was rejected so that the family would not have to feel like they were in limbo.

“I also hope that whenever a person is granted clemency or gets his sentence commuted, the years that he has already served while in remand or lock-up would be taken into account,” he added.

He spoke of cases he had come across in which a person was granted clemency to serve a life imprisonment term.

“The convict would serve another 20 years, as that is the number of years for life in prison. But the 15 years he had already served were not taken into consideration. This means he would spend 35 years behind bars,” he said.