At the 14th Malaysian Law Conference held on 30th Oct 2007 Sultan Azlan Shah, a former Lord President, in his opening address said :

“It is time for the judiciary to regain the public’s confidence and bring back the glory years.” The Sultan called for major reforms in the judiciary. He said it was time for the judiciary to regain the public’s confidence and bring back the glory years. For this, he added, mere cosmetic changes were not enough.

The Perak ruler said recent reports about “disturbing events” relating to the judiciary, together with other serious criticisms against it were cause for concern.

“I am driven nostalgically to look back to a time when our judiciary was the pride of the region and our neighbours spoke admiringly of our legal system.“We were then second to none and the judgments of our courts were quoted confidently in other common law jurisdictions,” said Sultan Azlan Shah, a former Lord President.

There was no reason why judges, with the security of tenure they enjoyed under the Constitution, could not discharge their duties impartially, confidently and competently. Judges, said Sultan Azlan, had to be both independent and competent. Therefore, he said, judges had to piously resist the lure of socialising with business personages and other well-connected people.

“Nothing destroys more the confidence the general public, or the business community has in the judiciary than the belief that the judge was biased when he decided a case, or that the judge would not be independent where powerful individuals or corporations are the litigants before him,” This is indeed a poor reflection on our courts,” the Sultan said.

“Only last week, I read in the latest Malaysian law report that a case of medical negligence involving the death of a lawyer took 23 years to reach the Court of Appeal. “Surely, such a situation cannot be tolerated in any progressive nation.”

Sultan Azlan Shah also said he was reminded of a proud accolade of the late former Lord President Tun Suffian Hashim in his Braddell Memorial Lecture in 1982:

“ …while we judges cannot help being Malay or Chinese or Indian; or being Muslim or Buddhist or Hindu or whatever, we strive not to be too identified with any particular race or religion — so that nobody reading our judgment with our name deleted could, with confidence, identify our race or religion and so that the various communities, are assured that we will not allow their rights to be trampled underfoot”.

Accolrding to the Sultan it was in the judiciary that the people placed their trust and hope. “It is my earnest hope that the Malaysian judiciary will regain the public’s confidence and it will once again be held in the high esteem as it once was held,”

We trust the Rulers select a right candidate for the important post
of Chief Justice – irrespective of Ethnicity as we need Law Reform
in this country.

Later inside the court, I think he morphed into his usual self when he saw and felt the vibes of love and support from his many fans.
At least he got a decent meal today and his loved ones were close by. God Bless you dear Raja Petra

RAJA PETRA, FATHER OF DEMOCRATIC MALAYSIA

RPK, Your name is engraved in Malaysian History as The Great Warrior of Truth, Justice and Peace.

Peace be with you, Mahatma, O Great Soul!

(C) Samuel Goh Kim Eng – 061008
http://MotivationInMotion.blogspot.com
Mon. 6th Oct. 2008.

My heart aches and my tears roll down when i see the pic of
RPK. RPK has thinned down…

Marina, I feel your pain and i want to thank you for sharing RPK with the Rakyat. Thank you for your selfless love!

RPK and Marina, you have sacrificed heaps for the people.

Please remember your labour is not in vain.

The people love you too.

God bless RPK, Marina and all in the family!