Isn’t it treason to knowingly subvert the Rule of Law and the Separation of Powers? It should be.
Read MoreWhy are we mollycoddling our public figures?
Why are we mollycoddling our public figures? There is a weapon far deadlier than a nuclear bomb. Words are the most powerful weapons in all the world. So much so that a cautionary note penned in 1885 reads: - ‘Every word is endowed with a spirit … One word may be likened unto fire, another unto light, and the influence which both exert is manifest in the world.’ It has been said that a ...
Read MoreWho said the Prime Minister is not a public officer?
Who said the Prime Minister is not a public officer? Two separate panels of the Court of Appeal did. One panel heard Mahathir’s appeal. It delivered its decision in April of this year. The second panel of the Court of Appeal heard Tony Pua’s appeal and delivered its decision last week. Both Mahathir and Tony Pua had sued the then Prime Minister Najib for the tort of public misfeasance. Both lost. When they ...
Read More[Edited by S. Kamatchy and Suria Juan Pillai] In an article dated 13.07.2018, the ex-Chief Justice, Tun Abdul Hamid says that from 9:30 p.m. on July 11 up to midnight July 31, 2018 there are now two Chief Justices. Is he right? The long and short of all of this is… When the King accepted the resignations of the outgoing CJ and the PCA on 8 June 2018, their offices ceased. The King did ...
Read MoreWe have all heard that there is a right to freedom of speech, the right to peaceful assembly, and the right to form associations: Article 10, Federal Constitution. Do you have a right to travel? Is it guaranteed in the Constitution? Article 9 of the Constitution states that ‘… every citizen has a right to move freely throughout the Federation and to reside in any part thereof.’ So there it is: you can move ...
Read MoreA right is inherent. It does not have to be written down anywhere. For example, the right to life, the right to religious freedom, the right to speak freely, or the right to associate with anyone one chooses. Some writers refer to rights enshrined in the Constitution. These inalienable rights above are different, and far superior to constitutional rights. A power has its genesis either in constitutional law, common law or ...
Read MoreWhen former prime minister Najib Razak was charged in court two days ago, the High Court, in the exercise of its criminal jurisdiction and powers, granted an interim gag order. Najib’s lawyer argued that Najib should not be ‘tried by the media.’ The order sought to stop public discussions over the charges pending against Najib. The court said it would hear full arguments on the gag orders later. It nonetheless granted ...
Read MoreYou have seen the articles emerging from this blog since 09 May 2018 — or ‘5-0-9’ as I called the GE14 (the date of May 09th, 2018). There is a story behind these articles. Their production and timing were wholly accidental. In the years to come the people may become quiescent. They may, once again, feel re-assured behind their closed doors. But these issues filled the night of 5-0-9, like night-tracer shells from artillery. ...
Read MoreWhat happens when judges, bending like reeds in the wind, carry out the biddings of their political masters? Something extraordinary has to be done. Corrupt judges, past and present, ought to be publicly impeached. Can it be done? How?
Read MoreSomeone asked me last week, ‘What did Karpal do for us? What did Lim Kit Siang?’ I blinked. I thought I didn’t hear it right. What did they do? The guy who asked was young. Too young. I attempted an answer and unaccountably slipped into melancholy. I began by saying... These men fought a long-drawn out battle against an implacable enemy—entrenched racism. They fought for the rule of law. They argued that the ...
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