ENFORCING THE RULE OF
LAW
Chandra Muzaffar
One hopes that upholding and enforcing the rule of law will
be one of the legacies of Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s leadership. He has emphasised
the importance of this fundamental principle of governance over and over again
since he assumed the prime ministership for the second time in his life on the
10th of May 2018. The rule of law, needless to say, is what distinguishes a
civilised society. It has been at the core of the long struggle for human
dignity and social justice for centuries.
The rule of law is not just about a society governed by
laws. The laws must be just and fair. They must promote and protect equality
and dignity. When the law is supreme there will be no room for arbitrariness.
All segments of the nation should have a clear understanding of what the rule
of law implies. It is a pity that this is lacking in our society though the
Rule of Law is the fourth principle of the Rukunegara, Malaysia’s national
philosophy.
As part of this understanding of the Rule of Law, Malaysians
should realise that the greatest threat to the Rule of law comes from the abuse
of power. The abuse of power associated with those who formulate the laws, who
implement the laws and who enforce the laws. In the last few years under the
Najib Razak government individuals and groups at different levels of society
suffered from the consequences of such wanton abuse of power.
It has underscored the critical importance of establishing
mechanisms to curb and, if possible, eliminate such abuse. A law that requires
those exercising executive and legislative powers to declare their assets and
liabilities to the public and another that regulates the financing of political
parties are among the mechanisms in the offing. Making certain appointments
such as the Chief Commissioner of the Anti-Corruption Commission answerable to
a parliamentary Select Committee would be yet another move designed to enhance
public accountability.
In this regard, the Prime Minister had also announced on the
11th of September 2018 the establishment of two institutions which are crucial
for checking abuse of power especially in relation to the ordinary citizen. The
Independent Police Complaints and Misconduct Commission (IPCMC) was perhaps the
most significant of the 125 recommendations made by a Royal Commission in 2005
but it failed to materialise mainly because of opposition from certain quarters
and the lack of political will on the part of the powers-that-be. The IPCMC was
supposed to investigate and act on police corruption, criminal offences by the
police and other misconduct. It was largely because police abuses had become
rife and rampant that there was public clamour for an independent body to
investigate and act. Now after 13 years, Dr Mahathir has taken the courageous
step of bringing the IPCMC into reality. It is a timely move that is most
welcome because there is increasing evidence of bribes allegedly influencing
police investigations and of malice stemming from extraneous links driving the
conduct of certain police personnel.
For misconduct outside the police, Dr Mahathir is proposing
an Ombudsman Act which will install a public official who will receive,
investigate and act on complaints of abuses by all public officials. To be
effective, different spheres of public life should have different ombudsman. It
is interesting that this idea was first explored in the early seventies by the
second Prime Minister, the late Tun Abdul Razak Hussein. One hopes that it will
now see the light of day.
To be honest, there is no guarantee that the IPCMC and the
Ombudsman will emerge as effective, independent instruments for checking abuse
of power. There may be attempts by public servants themselves to dilute their
independence, to weaken their strength. Or those who are given the task of actually
designing these instruments may procrastinate or find all sorts of excuses to
delay their implementation. In other words, we should not discount the danger
of sabotage or subversion from within.
This is a danger that is real especially in view of the
allegation made by the Chairman of the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP), Tun
Daim Zainuddin, that there maybe “moles” in the public services leaking
information to the likes of Jho Low, wanted by the Malaysian authorities and
other jurisdictions because of his pivotal role in the 1MDB scandal. What this
suggests is that action against wrong-doers maybe hampered and hindered by
those who are entrusted with the mission of protecting the public good.
Sabotage from within is therefore a factor that should also be considered in
the struggle to enforce the rule of law.
All the more reason why Malaysians with conscience and
integrity should not waver in this momentous struggle.
Dr Chandra Muzaffar is the Chairman of the Board of Trustees
of Yayasan Perpaduan Malaysia (YPM).
Petaling Jaya.
14 October 2018.