(Petaling Jaya, Tuesday): When
there is public disagreement between the Prime Minister and a senior Cabinet
Minister about police inaction in their investigations into
high-profile criminal breach of trust (CBT) and other criminal cases, the
rot in the system of justice has sunk to another depth.On Sunday, the Prime
Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad dissociated himself from his Minister
in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Seri Dr. Rais Yatim and said that
CBT investigations involving certain individuals or organisations were
carried out irrespective of the positions of those suspected.
Rais had castigated
enforcement authorities for not pursuing till the end CBT investigations
into high-profile cases, as there seems to be a trend in the country for
“high-profile” cases to end up with inconclusive results where nothing
happened.
Who is right
the Prime Minister or the Minister in the PM’s Office.
I believe if a national poll is conducted, Rais will win hands down.
It is not a question
of the people having “an unhealthy view” and the Prime Minister’s dragging
in Karpal Singh will not change the nation-wide perception that there is a law
for VIPs in government and another law for
the ordinary person in the street, where the former are allowed to get
away with impunity with CBT, corruption or other criminal practices while the
latter are punished or victimized with the most paltry or non-existent crimes.
I believe it will be
a rarity if there is any Malaysian, regardless of race, religion or party
belief, who could not name a few cases of VIPs in
“high-profile” cases getting away scotfree without being arrested and
prosecuted in court despite police reports against them and ensuing
investigations.
The Cabinet meeting
tomorrow should give Rais’ statement the most serious consideration.
It is just not good enough for Mahathir to end or dismiss the matter by
saying that Rais had not raised the
matter with him.
The Cabinet should go
through the list of 21 inconclusive high-profile cases mentioned by Rais,
but Ministers who have outstanding police reports lodged against them,
like the MCA President and Transport
Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Ling Liong Sik and
the Minister for International trade and Industry, Datuk Paduka Rafidah Aziz,
should absent themselves from this part of the Cabinet meeting as they have a
personal “vested” interest.
A post-Cabinet
announcement should be made tomorrow as to the status of the 21 inconclusive
high-profile cases listed by Rais, and the number and identity of Ministers who
withdrew from the Cabinet discussion because they have outstanding police
reports lodged against them.
It will be both
tragic and pathetic if Rais’ serious allegation of 21 “high-profile” cases
which had led to nowhere
after investigations could not be discussed properly in the Cabinet because
there are too many Ministers who have outstanding police reports and
inconclusive police investigations themselves!
Let the Cabinet
announce tomorrow what has happened to the outstanding “high-profile” cases,
including:
(28/5/2002)