KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 25 — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said he selected Tan Sri Tommy Thomas as his attorney general due to his reputation for neutrality.
According to an interview with The Star, however, the former prime minister said this began to change since Thomas published his memoir, My Story: Justice in The Wilderness.
“After he wrote the book, he started to voice out his opinions. But his appointment was done before he wrote the book.
“We knew at the time that he was a lawyer who sticks to the rule of law. So, he was appointed as he was known for this.
“He was not biased in favour of the government. In fact, he was very critical of me when I was the prime minister. He was impartial, that is why he was appointed,” Dr Mahathir was quoted as saying.
Dr Mahathir then said he would choose a person who was “not biased” if given the opportunity to revisit his decision.
He also disputed claims Thomas made in the book that portrayed a Malay-dominated government as incompetent.
“This country has been independent for more than 65 years.
“For more than 60 years, the government of this country was dominated by the Malays. It became an ‘Asian Tiger’ and became the best performing of all the former British colonies.
“So, you cannot blame the Malays for bad governance because they grew this country whereas the British did not,” Dr Mahathir was quoted as saying.
After winning the 14th general election, Dr Mahathir selected Thomas as the AG to replace Tan Sri Apandi Ali. Thomas vacated the post after Dr Mahathir’s unforced resignation as the prime minister in 2020.
A special task force led by Sarawak Legal Adviser Datuk Seri Fong Joo Chung had spent nine months investigating Thomas’ assertions about what happened behind the scenes during the PH government’s brief 22-month rule.
The task force’s 241-page report was declassified on October 21 and published on the website of the Legal Affairs Division.
The report highlighted possible offences in the book that fell into four categories: allegations against the judiciary, disclosure of classified information, possible abuse and professional negligence, and sedition.
Thomas’ book was published last year and was criticised by the Attorney General’s Chambers, lawyers and politicians, among others, for allegedly containing elements of incitement, insults and defamation.
More than 100 police reports were lodged against Thomas over his book.
