Is there an easier way to send political Fat Cats to prison?

Political Fat Cats are getting away. They've robbed our nation of its wealth. They employ all manner of delaying tactics. The people grow impatient. The authorities say, "Our hands are full. This will take a long time”. The Fat Cats count on an over-burdened system. So isn't there an easier way to get them? There is. The ‘Nuclear Option’ is in section 114 of the Income Tax ...

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Will Corruption Amnesty Work? [Part-2: Proposals]

This is Part 2 of the article entitled, ‘Will Corruption Amnesty Work?’ You’ll find part 1 here. We saw, in Part-1, how if we sack every corrupt person, we’d lose a substantial number of people in enforcement agencies, local governments, courts, and the Government. This is because corruption in Malaysia is deep-seated. So what? Corruption and State Capture Corruptions infects and emaciates a nation, its institutions and its people. It kills a just and efficient ...

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Should judges condone inequitable behaviour of counsel?

How far should lawyers go to win a case? And how long should judges refuse to sanction counsel’s egregious conduct? Advocates and solicitors ( ‘lawyer’ and ‘counsel’ are used interchangeably) always must exhibit the highest level of professional conduct. They must always uphold the dignity of the profession and the interest of justice. Towards opposing counsel they must show candour, courtesy and fairness. No one should deceive a court, or his or ...

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Could we eliminate electoral fraud by improving election laws?

Could we eliminate electoral fraud by improving election laws? An election petition is a difficult thing. The law has ring-fenced it with several impenetrable technical rules.  Combating electoral corruption under the current, antiquated laws is impossible. After the results of the 13th General elections results were announced on 5 March 2013, I was asked, with a dozen others, to file election petitions for 22 constituencies in Perak. The petitions alleged that the winners ...

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On the horns of a dilemma – will the Federal Court judges recuse themselves?

An unusual thing happened at the Federal Court on August 6, 2018.  There is a history to this.  You know it well. It concerns a company called 1MDB and the ex-PM Najib Razak. On March 23, 2016, Mahathir sued the then PM Najib Razak for ‘misfeasance in public office’. The High Court struck out the suit. The judge ruled that a prime minister was not a ‘public officer.  The Court of ...

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Why 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 ...

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