Police report lodged against Mahathir
Malaysiakini.com
Jun 11, 2008
Syed Jaymal Zahiid 

DAP chairperson and veteran lawyer Karpal Singh today lodged a police report against Dr Mahathir Mohammad for allegedly
MCPX
threatening judges during his premiership as claimed by a High Court judge on Monday.

Karpal lodged the report at the Jalan Tun HS Lee police station this evening.

"I want the report to be thoroughly investigated by the police as the allegations clearly reveal an offence under section 186 of the Penal Code which prohibits obstruction of justice," Karpal told reporters after lodging his report.

Section 186 states that "whoever voluntarily obstructed any public servant in the discharge of his public functions shall be punished with a maximum two year jail or a fine of RM10,000 maximum or both".

The Borneo Post yesterday reported Sabah and Sarawak High Court judge Ian Chin's allegations that Mahathir had threatened judges with removal should they decide unfavourably towards his administration.

Chin sent shock waves through the legal fraternity when he exposed incidents of executive interference dating back more than 10 years.

The revelations were made at the start of an election petition hearing yesterday, over which he is presiding.

He implicated former prime minister Mahathir and former chief justice Eusoff Chin - two key personalities in the VK Lingam tape scandal which had recently rocked the country's judiciary.

According to Chin, Mahathir made "thinly-veiled threat to remove judges" if they do not deliver judgement that favours Mahathir's administration. The threat was supposedly made during a judges' conference in April 1997.

Disclosure 11 years late

Though Chin's revelation was lauded by some as a brave act, Karpal however felt that the judge had made the disclosure rather too late.

"Chin should state his reasons as to why he kept silent all these years and the judges should ponder over their conscience for not having been courageous enough," slams Karpal.

For the DAP politician, Chin as well as other judges that attended the conference in 1997 have done a disservice to the rule of law.

"Fear of the executive should be alien to judicial office. The judges ought to have made a collective exposure of the threats made by Mahathir," he said.

Chin also claimed that he and other selected judges and judicial officers that was seen as renegades by Mahathir were sent to ‘boot camps' where they were allegedly indoctrinated to prioritise government interests when delivering judgements.

Mahathir in his blog posting today said he will refrain from commenting for the time being but will do so in due time.

De facto law minister Zaid Ibrahim also said today that he was not keen to have an investigation, enquiry or commission to probe the latest allegation that judges were pressured into making pro-government decisions, failing which they were threatened with dismissal.

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