Malaysia
Bar rejects Umno lawyer’s ‘busybody’ label, says has duty to uphold rule of law
Steven Thiru, President of the Malaysian Bar at the coucilu00e2u20acu2122s 70th annual general meeting in the Renaissance Hotel Kuala Lumpur, March 19, 2016. u00e2u20acu201d Picture by Saw Siow Feng
By AIZYL AZLEE
Saturday, 19 Mar 2016 7:07 PM MYT

KUALA LUMPUR, March 19 ― Malaysian Bar president Steven Thiru today rejected an Umno lawyer’s claim that it was a “busybody” for seeking judicial review of the Attorney-General’s decision on the RM2.6 billion deposited in the prime minister’s accounts.

Steven insisted that Tan Sri Mohd Apandi Ali’s decisions regarding the sum and a former 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) unit raised concerns about the Federal Constitution, making it the business of all Malaysians.

“None of us can be busybodies in a matter that is so important that it goes back to the document which is our founding document. And certainly the Bar would have a say in it,” the re-elected president told reporters here after the Malaysian Bar Annual General Meeting.

“Because under our Act, the Legal Profession Act, we are obliged to uphold the rule of law. That's a mandate that we have. So, by no stretch of imagination can you say we're a busybody,” he added.

Umno lawyer Tan Sri Mohd Shafee Abdullah earlier this week questioned the Bar’s standing to apply for the judicial review, saying the matter was not its concern.

Mohd Shafee had claimed that the Bar was not a victim in the case and may not have locus standi to seek judicial review over the matter, citing British common law.
 
Thiru retorted today to say, however, that such a view was “outdated and regressive”, and that laws regarding locus have changed significantly in recent times including here in Malaysia.
 
“Our law today is actually a very progressive law, that allows a person who is aggrieved by a particular decision to bring a case to court, so I think to say that there's no locus standi for the Bar is looking at the law at a very outdated and regressive manner. The law has been liberalised,” he said.
 
The Malaysian Bar on Tuesday filed for a judicial review on the AG’s decision to clear the prime minister in the cases of SRC International and the RM2.6 billion deposited in the latter’s accounts ahead of Election 2013.

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