PETALING JAYA: Public concerns over the independence of the judiciary has somewhat eased with Datuk Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh’s appointment as the new Chief Justice, say several PKR MPs.
However, there was some disquiet because of his background as a former Umno leader, while also being more junior than some other judges, they said in a joint statement yesterday.
It was issued by Datuk Seri Rafizi Ramli (Pandan), Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad (Setiawangsa), Wong Chen (Subang), Rodziah Ismail (Ampang), Zahir Hassan (Wangsa Maju), Datuk Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik (Balik Pulau), Syed Ibrahim Syed Noh (Ledang), S. Kesavan (Sungai Siput) and Onn Abu Bakar (Batu Pahat).
They hoped that Wan Ahmad Farid would accept the different views of his appointment with an open mind.
“It should serve as a guide and encouragement to prove that his leadership will defend the independence of the judiciary, surpassing the excellent record of Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat.
“We hope Wan Ahmad Farid will continue efforts to strengthen the independence of the judiciary and resolve several issues, including finalising the appointment of 31 vacancies for judges as soon as possible, to avoid disruption to the flow of judicial administration.
“The appointment of judges should be based on merit and seniority, so that it is fair to judges who have served for a long time and are responsible for maintaining the quality and good reputation of the judiciary,” they said.
They added that the appointment of judges must follow due process without any interference.
They called for reforms to further strengthen the process of appointing judges.
They said Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s administration should not view the matter as completely resolved without improvements to the judicial appointment process.
To this end, they proposed for the prime minister’s power to reject the list of nominations from the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) be improved and limited, with an official reason (either to the JAC or Parliament) required as to why a candidate screened by the JAC had been rejected.
Other proposals include candidates from legal bodies in the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak automatically appointed to the JAC, reducing the prime minister’s power to appoint the majority of JAC members.
“We also propose that Parliament be involved in confirming the nominations from the JAC before they are brought to the prime minister, either in the form of a confirmation hearing as is the case in other countries, or the form of a parliamentary vote (according to a voting mechanism that can be determined later),” they said.
