Monday May 26, 2008

Salleh Abas dares critics to call for inquiry

By CHELSEA L.Y. NG

PETALING JAYA: Former Lord President Tun Salleh Abas has dared his critics to call for a Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate the 1988 judicial crisis instead of prolonging debates on the issue.

He said he wanted to forget the crisis and put everything behind him but there were people who were not happy with him getting the ex-gratia payment from the Government.

“If anybody is not happy with my innocence, call for the Government to set up a Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate,” the 79-year-old Salleh said, when contacted.

He was reacting to discussions about why he and other judges who were dismissed in 1988 were given the ex-gratia payment when two separate tribunals had found them guilty of misconduct.

One particular article was by lawyer Matthias Chang, who served as political secretary to Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad while he was the Prime Minister.

The article posted on bigdogdotcom.wordpress.com bore the title “Tun Salleh: Guilty or not guilty for judicial misconduct?”

Salleh said there were those who were happy that the payment had sort of cleared his name but some were still “so unhappy.”

“I think these unhappy people who doubted my innocence should channel all their energy to something more positive and that is to call for the Royal Commission of Inquiry.

“I never lobbied for the ex-gratia payment. All these years,I have been living in my kampung for 20 years.

“Suddenly the Government decided to resurrect me and address my innocence,” said Salleh, who was brought before a tribunal for misconduct in 1988.

Five judges of the Supreme Court granted him an interim order against the tribunal. The order was later set aside and in August 1988, Salleh was officially removed from the post of Lord President.

The five Supreme Court judges who granted Salleh the interlocutory order – Tan Sri Azmi Kamaruddin, Tan Sri Eusoffe Abdoolcader, Tan Sri Wan Hamzah Mohamed Salleh, Wan Suleiman Pawan Teh and Datuk George Seah – were suspended.

In October, Wan Sulaiman and Seah were sacked while the three others were reinstated.

Ahirudin Attan in his blog Rocky’s Bru (rockybru.blogspot.com) posted the news about Salleh’s challenge yesterday to Chang.

The blog also said the Royal Commission of Inquiry should call as witnesses, the main players in the 1988 event which included Dr Mahathir, the then Chief Secretary to the Government, the then Attorney-General Tan Sri Abu Talib Othman, Tun Hamid Omar, who chaired the 1988 Tribunal and who succeed Salleh after his sacking and the surviving judges who were suspended or sacked by the Tribunals.