ALLEGATIONS against Court of Appeal judge Datuk Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali must be seen in the context of surreptitious attempts to free former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.
In any case, I do not think Nazlan is a special person who requires immunity from prosecution. He is no different than you and me.
If he had indulged in criminal activities, the law applies to him as well as others, despite the fact that Nazlan is a well-known judge for convicted Najib in the SRC International Sdn Bhd case.
However, the issue here now is not about Nazlan per se but about the attacks against the judiciary, sparked by a Facebook posting by fugitive blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin.
In his posting, Raja Petra alleged that Nazlan had unexplained wealth in his bank account. In turn, Nazlan lodged a police report on the allegations leading to the investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
It is not that the MACC cannot investigate public officials. It has all the right to do so provided, of course, the anti-graft agency has proved itself as a powerful watchdog of public interests.
If MACC’s chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki has not been satisfactorily cleared for dabbling in the share market, then the question arises as to the legitimacy of the MACC in investigating the alleged wrongdoings of Nazlan.
And if the mercenary fugitive blogger has so much clout in ordering things in the country, I really wonder about the sanctity of information obtained from his dubious sources.
I wonder about the “deal” with the blogger who has no guts to stay in the country to fight a worthy cause, but runs away to seek the shelter of the former colonial power.
From his hideout in UK, Raja Petra spews venom and lies about those he has been “commissioned” to discredit. So, what is the difference between Raja Petra and the other infamous fugitives?
Why are we paying so much attention to this fugitive in the UK apart from the fact that he has links with some disgraced public officials in the country?
And the Malaysian Bar is jealously guarding the sanctity of our judiciary. Whether or not Nazlan engaged in criminal activities or not remains to be seen. Let the MACC investigate him.
Just that an efficient and bold judge has been targeted for prosecution. It is just that his decision against Najib irked powerful figures in the country.
As for Najib, the Pekan MP lost his appeal in the Court of Appeal and the matter has been escalated to the Federal Court for a final decision.
It is not certain when the decision will made, but one thing is for sure, there is an attempt to discredit Nazlan hoping that if such an attempt if succeeds, it may influence the Federal Court’s judgement.
Judiciary strikes back
It looks like a well-orchestrated movement by those in Najib’s camp to discredit Nazlan before the Federal Court decides.
It is not about whether Nazlan has a case to answer but whether the ongoing MACC investigation will be able to cast sufficient doubts on Nazlan’s integrity.
If the moves succeed, then there is good chance that Najib’s lawyers will be able to mount an effective appeal on the grounds that Nazlan was a “crooked judge”.
With the investigation by the MACC, whether Nazlan is convicted or not, is not important for those who are bent on freeing Najib. It is about creating doubts about Nazlan’s verdict.
Once Nazlan has been sufficiently discredited, there is a wishful thinking on the part of the Najib’s camp that the apex court will rule in favour of “Bossku”.
Anyway, it is not that our judiciary has an excellent reputation, but whatever good image it had was ruined by politicians. Hence, the judiciary is making comeback to reclaim lost ground.
Whatever its faults in the past, it still remains an institution of justice and freedom even though the country is marred with political decay
And the allegations against Nazlan must be seen as a clandestine and surreptitious move by some quarters to prevent Najib from going to jail for his involvement in colossal corruption and shameless misdeeds. – May 8, 2022
