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PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) has called for the speedy formation of a Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) into allegations of judicial misconduct in an affidavit filed by Court of Appeal Judge Hamid Sultan Abu Backer in 2019.
Suhakam said Putrajaya had announced in February 2019 that he would form an RCI, but so far there has been no word on the investigation or his investigations into the allegations.
“The judiciary is a fundamental pillar of a democratic state and its independence and integrity are fundamental to guarantee the public’s confidence in a fair and impartial justice for all in the country.
“The allegations made in the affidavit, if proven to be true, are serious violations of human rights and the freedoms guaranteed in the Federal Constitution, in particular equality before the law and equal protection of the law for all.
“Suhakam hopes that the RCI will be established without further delay to restore public confidence in the justice system and protect the independence of the judiciary,” he said in a statement today.
This comes after Hamid reportedly sent an “explosive” response to a good cause notice to affirm an affidavit that senior judges had weighed in on the decisions of numerous appeals, including the sedition case of the late Karpal Singh. .
Sources told the FMT that the chief judge, who is scheduled to retire next year, was believed to have defended the entire content of the affidavit and also a 101-page sentence he delivered in early June.
It was the first time a just cause notice had been issued to a judge since a code of ethics was drafted in 2009.
