KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 31 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak has rejected a call to investigate his predecessor Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad for allegedly squandering Malaysia's wealth, saying that there cannot be a royal commission for every single complaint.
“There is always this call for a royal commission. Everything, you want royal commission, but (it) is not appropriate to call for a royal commission just because somebody has written a book,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
He was responding to a call by opposition MP Lim Kit Siang to set up a royal commission of inquiry to investigate allegations that Dr Mahathir squandered billions during his tenure from 1981 to 2003.
The claims were made in a book, “Malaysian Maverick: Mahathir Mohamad In Turbulent Times”, published recently by former newspaper editor Barry Wain. The book, launched in Singapore, is not yet available in Malaysia.
Dr Mahathir has said he welcomed any investigation into his tenure. But Najib disagreed.
“What is important for us is to look forward to the future. Each prime minister has made a lot of contributions, otherwise we would not be what we are today,” said Najib.
Umno MP Nur Jazlan Mohamed said “there is no responsibility for the government to jump just because of a book”.
Bar Council chairman Ragunath Kesavan said that without a defined scope of investigation, a royal commission in such a matter would merely be going on a “fishing expedition” and would serve no purpose.
The royal commission of inquiry has become the default call of the opposition whenever a scandal crops up. Under such pressure, and as public confidence in existing enforcement authorities plummets, the royal commission has become used more frequently in recent years.
The law allows a royal commission, comprising respected individuals, to be set up to look into matters of public welfare. Their findings are not binding on the government.
But the credibility of this mechanism has also come under threat after recommendations of recent commissions had been ignored by the government.
In the past 10 years, three royal commissions had been set up, and one more had been promised but yet to be convened.
A royal commission set up by Dr Mahathir in 1999 to investigate injuries suffered by opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim in police custody had resulted in former police chief Tan Sri Rahim Noor being charged.
But two subsequent commissions set up by then-Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi — one on the police in 2004 and one on judicial appointments in 2008 — have seen their recommendations ignored.
The commission on police reforms had recommended the establishment of an independent body to investigate police misconduct, but this has not been implemented due to resistance from the police.
Soon after that, Abdullah set up another commission to look into allegations that a prominent lawyer conspired with a senior politician and a well-connected businessman to secure a promotion for a judge.
The commission found evidence of wrongdoing, but the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC) closed the case.
This year, Najib promised a royal commission to scrutinise the MACC's interrogation procedures after an opposition worker was found dead at its office. The opposition aide had earlier been questioned into the wee hours as a witness for a case. This royal commission has yet to be convened.
Unlike a court, a commission's powers are limited, and it has to rely on government institutions to enforce its recommendations. But the government has tended to shelve findings that are inconvenient.
“It all depends on the sincerity of the government. Once it decides to set one up, it should follow through. But it seems that when the heat is on, it sets up a commission to deflect the pressure for a few months, and is not serious about the findings,” said Ragunath.
“It has become a mechanism that is overused but underperforming.” — The Straits Times
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