KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 22 — The government’s long-discussed plan to separate the powers of the Attorney General (AG) and Public Prosecutor will require a sweeping structural overhaul of Malaysia’s legal machinery, including the creation of an entirely new prosecution department, Attorney General Tan Sri Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar said.
Speaking to Berita Harian, Dusuki said the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) is part of the Technical Task Force overseeing the reform and is working closely with multiple agencies — among them the Ministry of Finance, the Public Service Department, the Judicial and Legal Service Commission and the Public Services Commission — to map out organisational design, staffing needs, logistics and financial implications.
Government comparative studies abroad, he said, showed that jurisdictions with an independent prosecution service allow its chief to devote full attention to handling high-profile and sensitive criminal cases, without being burdened by the diplomatic and advisory duties that fall to an Attorney General.
“It has been observed that Public Prosecutors abroad generally handle high-profile and sensitive cases because they are not tied to the responsibilities of an Attorney General,” he said.
“As is widely known, the Attorney General is also involved in matters requiring overseas travel, whether for negotiations or for the settlement of international disputes.
“Therefore, with a dedicated prosecution department in Malaysia, the Public Prosecutor heading the agency will be able to give full attention to prosecutorial matters alone.”
The reforms are moving in tandem with a second major institutional proposal — a two-term limit for the prime minister — which Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said said will be tabled for first reading in the Dewan Rakyat tomorrow.
Dusuki added that separating the two offices would help “strengthen and clarify the separation of powers” and boost the efficiency of government service delivery, with two individuals able to make decisions independently within their own portfolios.
But he cautioned that the change will require amendments to several fundamental laws, including the Federal Constitution.
Prosecutorial powers currently sit under Article 145 and will have to be removed before a new constitutional provision can be created to empower the proposed Public Prosecutor’s office.
The Criminal Procedure Code will also need updating, Dusuki said, alongside further consequential amendments to multiple other statutes.
“With these changes, the new department will be properly empowered,” he said.
