PETALING JAYA: The perception that Malaysia practises "ikan yu, ikan bilis" justice, where political "sharks" escape the law while "anchovies" face the full force of enforcement, has persisted despite the 2018 political transition.
A new study by Project Stability and Accountability for Malaysia (Projek Sama) urges the government to enact bolder reforms in public prosecution and political financing, surpassing its current commitment to separate the roles of Attorney General and Public Prosecutor.
The civil society group’s report highlights the need to address systemic weaknesses to restore public trust in the justice system.
"The public needs to see that equal justice applies to everyone, whether they are ikan yu or ikan bilis," the report, published on Tuesday (Dec 9), states.
Projek Sama’s analysis scrutinises prosecutorial conduct in corruption, criminal breach of trust and money-laundering (C-C-M) cases involving current or former elected representatives.
The report focuses on instances where the Attorney General’s Chambers exercised discretion to withdraw charges, leading to a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) or a discharge amounting to an acquittal (DAA).
Led by legal researcher Farah Izzah Haron, with assistance from convener Ngeow Chow Ying and member Wo Chang Xi, the research asks whether the post-GE14 era has brought change or if powerful politicians still receive favourable treatment.
While a DAA after a full trial may be legitimate, the report states that a DAA or DNAA resulting from charge withdrawals, delays or failure to pursue appeals risks undermining public confidence in the justice system.
The report examined 28 C-C-M cases involving 21 MPs or assemblymen initiated or continued since May 10, 2018.
Of these, nine cases are ongoing while 19 have been disposed of through conviction, DAA or DNAA.
"Ten of the disposed cases resulted from the Attorney General’s Chambers withdrawing charges under Section 254 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
"Three of those withdrawals were deemed legitimate due to death, technical correction or compound payment," the report notes.
However, Projek Sama flags troubling patterns in several high-profile political cases, which include Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, former finance minister Lim Guan Eng, Former Sabah chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman and Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Projek Sama warns that prolonged delays after DNAA rulings could strengthen defendants’ arguments for full acquittal later.
The report lists the number of days since DNAA for several cases: former Bachok MP Nasharudin Mat Isa (1,917 days), former federal territories minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Mansor (1,828 days), Ahmad Zahid (Yayasan Akal Budi case, 827 days), former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak (IPIC, 377 days), and the SRC2 case (172 days) as of Dec 9.
"These long delays risk turning DNAA into a natural precursor to DAA," the report stresses.
Based on its findings, Projek Sama urges the government to pursue prosecutorial reform and adopt Commonwealth best practices, such as establishing independent inspection mechanisms and parliamentary oversight.
The report proposes a formal code of conduct and prosecution guidelines, along with mandatory reporting requirements.
For political financing reform, the group calls for a Political Financing Act to define legitimate donations, amendments to the Election Offences Act 1954 to curb excessive campaign spending, and vote-based public funding for parties or candidates to reduce reliance on private financiers.
