narrativeautumn

The yellow wave and its durian effect
Azly Rahman
Malaysiakini Nov 12, 07

“Bersih, Cekap, Amanah” – old political slogan

“Cemerlang, Gemilang, Terbilang” – new political slogan

“B.e.r.s.i.h” – slogan to get from the new slogan to the old.

I quote the first few paragraphs of the 1776 American Declaration of Independence:

“… When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. …

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.-That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, -That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

Those are the words penned primarily by Thomas Jefferson, philosopher and statesman; words that became the document of American democracy that is still evolving.

Evolve we must

Evolve we must as a nation of multicultural poor yearning to break free from the shackles of poverty, alienation, massive corruption, and the tiredness of seeing power being abused and absolute power being abused absolutely.

Evolve we must by way of the slogans that have been fed to us religiously. By “we” we mean both the ruler and the ruled, the governor and the governed, the rakyat and the kerajaan (government). Essentially the process of “cleaning up” our act is both the desire of the ruling party and those who are protesting against it. We are a nation in need of therapy. We are one, essentially – our subjectivity and objectivity is being deconstructed and destroyed.

If we are to live with the truth and the power of the slogans we create, we must surrender to the will of the people who put us into power and wishes to see justice being served and a clean, transparent, and trustworthy government being put in place.

We have arrived at a juncture in our own brand of Civil Rights movement. We now need our own Magna Carta to teach our citizens the inalienable rights we have vis-a-vis the aristocrats; those that transformed themselves from the commoners to power-elites – through the huge machinery of money, media, and mental maneuverings and meanderings of the messages we created as the medium. We are made to live in a world of “managed perception”.

Don’t Pakistanize ourselves

Let us pray that we shall not have to Pakistanize ourselves in our struggle to exercise free speech and freedom of assembly. Unless we are like a nation at war with itself with us plunged as characters in the epic movie Lord of The Rings in which Humanity battles Humanoids in the war for natural justice set in antiquity.

The events that led to the declaration of emergency in Islamabad may as well foreshadow the nature and shape of things to come by the time campaigning and Election Day arrives.

Will the yellow fever, like the River HuangHe does, bring sorrow to the current regime? Is the nation seeing the seeds of destruction germinating? Will the Krakatau of the Malaysian rumbling and grumbling finally erupt?

I don’t know. You and I can only make informed guesses. Man proposes, God disposes.

We can only predict and plan for the translation of theory into practice. That’s what praxis is – the marriage of idealism and action to produce “cultural action for freedom”, as Latin liberation theologians such as Gustavo Gutierrez, Denis Goulet, and Paulo Freire would say. Or like what the brave heart Che Guevara would embody.

Being a student of social revolutions in which I have closely looked at the anatomy of peaceful and violent revolutions such as those of The American, The French, Cuban, Iranian, Nicaraguan, Indonesian and also the Computer and the Internet, I believe there are interesting elements one can extract from the Nov 10 march.

Unlike the French Revolution, the march did not begin in a tennis court but from many angles but denied the final congregation in front of Freedom/Independence/Merdeka Square. Nor it deposed a grandson of the Sun King, but rather seeks refuge in the Malay Supreme Ruler. Unlike the Cuban Revolution in which a law doctoral graduate Fidel Castro had to use extra-legal means to gain power and return it to the people, the November march began with a legal application that was denied and was preceded by the Lawyer’s Walk that sent memorandum to stop a judiciary rot. Unlike the Iranian Revolution in which a million people waited for Imam Khomeini, the Nov 10 march was a freedom march whose leadership is collaborative in nature. Unlike the Nicaraguan Revolution in which Daniel Ortega had to go underground to fight a guerilla war, Nov 10 saw not a single shot being fired nor Mat Rempits being hired. Unlike the American Revolution in which the French was General Washington’s ally, Nov 10 was purely a people’s protest devoid of outside influence. Unlike the most Indonesian Revolution in which Jakarta was burning, Nov 10 saw instead alleged chemical laced- water being sprayed on a rainy day.

Parallels and non-parallels there are.

But like the Computer Revolution that spread like wildfire and transformed millions into informed citizens Nov 10 was preceded by a good sense of informational war, with Malaysia-Today and a few other blogs hacked – the power of the Internet reigns supreme in spreading the yellow fever.

There is a durian dimension to the Nov 10 march of grievance.

The durian effect
The durian is a yellow fruit – an exquisite and truly “world-class” Malaysian fruit. It has a Marxist contradiction built in. It is pungent, banned in hotels and airplanes, tastes like vomit to some, feels like eating ice-cream in a Malaysian toilet to many, yet is has one of the most heavenly taste that even the most glorious of Malaysian statesmen and Supreme Rulers would not resist it over a pot of thick Malaccan coffee. In the yellowness of it lies heaven and hell. In it lies the joys and sorrow of tasting. It is a bitter fruit of freedom. Like the fruit in the song “Strange Fruit” rendered beautifully by the grand diva of jazz, Nina Simone; a fruit that tells America the story of lynching down South.

The yellowness of the durian is a metaphor of the yellow wave of change.

It’s only the beginning of a peaceful revolt against the might of the machine. Indeed the next wave will be met with even more machines from the regime. Like in the movie Lord of the Rings. Like in the movie the Matrix in which things will multiply as Humanity battles with Humanoids conditioned by totalitarianism.

The photos of the rally tell us a lot about the nature of our peaceful marches – thanks to the leaders and the marshals. Thanks to the wisdom of the leaders who are in tune and in syn with the gentleness of the people. But the faces of the protesters read like Chairil Anwar’s poems and WS Rendra’s plays.

We have evolved into brave souls with brave hearts. But with finesse and patience must we revolt. If we can have the masses to continue to wear yellow (like the Irish with their St. Patrick greens) as a memory of Nov 10, we will continue with the message right till Election Day. Revolutions need martyrs, reformations need signs and symbols and significations – etched in the memory of even the little child near Pasar Seni pepper-sprayed by the Mighty Machine trying with paranoia to crush those voices no longer in the wilderness.

This is why we have the yellow fever. Clean, Efficient, Trustworthy – a good old slogan to arrive at. But clean up we must. With lots of shower. Not with ones with chemically-laced water though.

We must evolve – collectively.

黄潮和其榴梿效应
姚文杰
當今大馬 07年11月23日
（原著文章：阿兹里拉曼，姚文杰翻译）

“清廉、有效率、可信赖”—旧政治口号。

“卓越、辉煌、昌盛”—新政治口号。

“廉洁”—一个从旧政治口号得之而来的新口号。

且让我引述1776年美国独立宣言的前几段：

在有关人类事务的发展进程中，当一个民族必须解除和另一个民族之间的政治关系，并在世界各国之间依照自然法则和上帝意旨，以接受独立和平等的地位时，出于对人类舆论的尊重，必须把他们不得不独立的理由公告天下。
我 们认为以下这些真理是不言而喻的:人人生而平等，造物者赋予他们若干不可剥夺的权利，其中包括生命权、自由权和追求幸福的权利。为了保障这些权利，才在他 们之间建立政府。政府之正当权力，是经被治理者同意而产生的。当任何形式的政府，对这些目标具有破坏作用时，人民就有权力改变或废除它，以建立新政府。新 政府奠基的原则，及其组织权力的方式，必须使人民获致最大的安全感与幸福感。

美国民主现今仍在发展，其所依据的文献，就是由哲学家兼政治家托玛斯?杰弗逊撰写的美国独立宣言。

我们必须进化
我们的国民对多元文化认识不足，向往挣脱贫穷、分化、贪腐的桎梏，以及摆脱眼睁睁地看着权力被滥用、绝对权力被侵犯的疲惫感，因此都必须进化。

我们的进化，应当以像宗教信仰般来灌输的口号为标准。“我们”涵盖着统治者和被统治者、领导者和被领导者，以及人民和政府。实质上，反贪腐是执政党和反对派的共同愿望。我们的主观性和客观性都被解构、摧毁，因此亟需治疗。
若我们想要拥有真理，以及得到口号中的力量，就必须遵循人民的意愿，毕竟是人民让我们执政的。人民也期望可以实现公平正义的理念，也希望看到一个廉洁、透明、值得信赖的政府执政。

我 们自家品牌的民权运动，已经到了一个关键时刻。我们需要自家版本的“大宪章”来教导公民—相对于贵族，我们也拥有着不可剥夺的权力。这里的“贵族”，是指 那些透过金钱和媒体的庞大机制，并以欺诈和被曲折的讯息作为工具，从平民阶级爬到政治菁英阶级的人。我们是活在一个“个人认知被控制”的世界里。

切莫自我巴基斯坦化

让我们一起祈祷吧，祈祷在这争取言论与集会自由的坎坷路上，我们不会自我巴基斯坦化。除非我们是一个内战中的国民—像奇幻史诗电影〈魔戒〉般—在那古时代分成人类和半兽人两大派，双方为了正义兵戎相见。

当竞选活动和大选来临时，伊斯兰堡宣布紧急状态的导因，我们也不妨引以为鉴。
这次的黄潮热会像黄河泛滥一样，令到政权害怕吗？国民看到毁灭的种子正在发芽吗？马来西亚人的怨声载道，会像印度尼西亚喀拉喀托火山般最终爆发吗？

我不知道，你我只能有根据地揣测。谋事在人，成事在天。

我们只能预测、策划来实践理论，这就是实践法—让理想与行动结合产生“追求自由的文化行动”。大概拉丁美洲解放神学家古铁雷斯、古莱特和弗雷勒也会这么会说，或者革命烈士格瓦拉也会体现这实践法。

身为一个社会革命运动的学生，我曾就近观察有关和平与暴力革命的分析，其中包括美国、法国、古巴、伊朗、尼加拉瓜、印尼，还有电脑和网络的科技革命，我想我可以从11月10日爆发的黄潮游行中，找到一些挺有趣的要素。
不像法国大革命，黄潮不是从一个网球场开始而是从各地发起，但最终不被允许在独立广场集合；黄潮也没有要罢免任何皇亲 国戚，反而向马来统治者寻求庇护。黄潮也不像古巴革命—当时拥有法学博士的卡斯特罗，必须采取法律管辖以外的步骤来夺取政权，之后再归还人民，黄潮组织申 请游行准证被拒绝，之前还有律师游行提交备忘录呼吁停止司法腐败。不像整整上百万人等着霍梅尼的伊朗革命，11月10日游行的领导层都跟民众紧密配合。不 像奥德嘉必须走入地下打游击战的尼加拉瓜革命，黄潮游行一枪也没开过，也没有雇用飙车族来壮大游行声势。不像美国独立战争—当时华盛顿将领有同盟国法国撑 腰，黄潮纯粹是一场没有外国势力影响的人民反对游行。不像让雅加达陷入一片熊熊火焰的印尼革命，黄潮游行反而见到警方在雨天发射渗有化学物质的水炮。

这些历史事迹，有些可以互相比较，有些则不然。

电脑革命像星星之火，瞬间将11月10日集会游行讯息如燎原般，在人民之间迅速蔓延开来。当然，在这之前就有理智的资讯战—《当今大马》和其他部落格开山劈石，让网络力量得以在“黄潮热”的扩散工作方面位居第一功臣。

11月10日黄潮游行有着一个榴梿特点。

榴梿效应
榴梿是一种精致的黄色水果，并且是真正“世界级”的大马水果，但当中也有马克斯主义式矛盾。榴莲之味道，颇为刺鼻，因 此被列为酒店、机场禁品。有些人觉得那味道彷若呕吐，抑或彷若置身大马的厕所里品尝雪糕，但榴梿也会让人觉得“此美味只应天上有”，就连德高望重的大马政 治家和统治者，也会为了它而舍弃一壶香味浓郁的马六甲咖啡。天堂和地狱、欢乐和忧伤就尽藏在那黄色果肉里头。榴梿是自由的苦果，正如伟大的女爵士歌手妮娜 西蒙演绎得非常好的〈怪异果〉—一个告诉美国人有关在南北战争后，南方白人杀害、逼迫黑人的故事。

榴梿的黄色性质，象征着黄潮的改革风潮。

这只是以和平起义对抗强权的开端而已，下一波黄潮将会碰上更多国家机器，就好像电影〈魔戒〉，或是像〈黑客任务〉里头的情节—人类和受极权主义支配的半兽人决一死战时，事情总是成倍增加。
游行照片显示黄潮的和平本质，这要感谢黄潮领袖和游行队伍统帅，也要感谢支持、同情人民，并且和人民一样温和的领袖。但游行者的脸庞，看起来像是凯里尔安哇尔（Chairil Anwar）的诗和WS仁达（WS Rendra）的表演。

我们的灵魂和心灵，已经进化到拥有勇气的阶段了，但我们也要有技巧和耐心以坚持改革。若大众以穿黄衣（例如爱尔兰人穿上属于圣伯德绿色的衣服）来纪念11月 10日，我们的讯息就可以一直延烧到大选。革命需要烈士，改革则需要讯号、标志和意义—在首都艺术广场附近的小孩，他们的记忆里都会留下烙印—庞大的国家 机器，妄想着可以利用水炮喷射不再是一盘散沙的反对派声音。

这就是为什么我们燃烧起了一股“黄潮热”。“廉洁、精明、可靠”，尽管都是旧口号，但都是我们要达到的大好目标。我们必须靠多“洗澡”来审贪，当然可不是用渗有化学物质的水炮。

我们都必须集体进化。

Deal with the rot, not the tape
M Bakri Musa
www.malaysiakini.com Sep 28, 07 11:41am
If Chief Justice Ahmad Fairuz has any sense of personal honour and professional integrity left, he should resign immediately. If Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has even the slightest responsibility for leadership and moral duty to the citizens, he should not extend the Chief Justice’s contract, due to expire this October. If the Malaysian Bar Council has any credible principle of societal obligation and self-policing ethics of a profession, it would disbar the lawyer making that phone call shown in the infamous video clip exposed by former deputy premier Anwar Ibrahim.

Alas, judging from past performances, expect none of these. That is the unfortunate reality of Malaysia today. What remains then would be for the King to withhold consent for extending Fairuz’s contract, thereby precipitating an unnecessary and distracting constitutional crisis the nation could ill bear.

The Bar Council had an emergency meeting, but instead of initiating the necessary disciplinary proceedings on the involved lawyer (which would definitely be within its power) it decided instead to march at Putrajaya and hand a petition to the prime minister demanding for a Royal Commission. Next those lawyers would be demonstrating on the streets. So Third World, a la Pakistan! I would have thought those smart lawyers would have concocted some novel legal theory on which to sue the government into action.

Meanwhile Abdullah Badawi was “disappointed,” not at the explosive contents of the video but the fact that it was released. Wake up, Mr Prime Minister! The rot is the Malaysian judiciary, not the taping. If Abdullah does perk up from his slumber, he would probably order the arrest of Anwar Ibrahim!

Chief Justice Fairuz, taking a leaf from the prime minister’s notorious “elegant silence,” issued a terse, “No comment!” It was neither elegant nor silent; instead it was ugly and spoke volumes.

Motive for taping
The quality of the recording is such that it is unlikely to be a fake. With today’s forensic capabilities, it would be foolish for anyone to even attempt this. The lawyer concerned was speaking on his cell phone, meaning, there will be the inerasable digital trail. My monthly cell phone bill details my outgoing and incoming calls. Because of the quality, the video could not be shot surreptitiously as with a cell phone a la the earlier “nude ear squat” episode. Besides, such a device was probably unavailable back in 2002.

The intriguing question then is why the taping was made in the first place. Dispensing with the most common and obvious reason – stupidity – I posit a few.

One is that basic human emotion: vanity. The bragging rights of accumulating the next million after you have already acquired a few declines very rapidly. You need some other trophies, like an embellished royal title or additional wives (for Muslims). If you already have those, or cannot acquire them, then the next intoxicating fantasy would be to be a kingmaker, or fancying yourself as one.

For a lawyer to be able to brag that you could “handle” senior judges must be the ultimate high. If also considerably enhances your ability as rainmaker. Years later in your old age, your skeptical grandchildren might attribute your boasts to nothing more than the rambling of a senile mind, unless of course you have the video to prove it!

Closely related to vanity is arrogance. Humility is when you could manipulate the nation’s judiciary and have the quiet satisfaction; arrogance is when you flaunt it. This lawyer Lingam was certainly flaunting it!

Alternatively, I do not put it below this shyster to put on this monologue with an imagined targeted senior judge at the other end, a la Lat’s old cartoon, and then purposely “leaked” the tape out. It would certainly be a headline grabber. As for a motive, rogues are known to do this to each other when they have a falling out. There is one quick way to check this: examine the tape to determine when it was manufactured.

The last possibility is that this could be an insider’s job, perhaps an employee’s scheme to get even with his or her boss just in case he would get nasty in future. Knowing how law firms’ employees are treated in Malaysia, this is a real possibility.

No remedy
After much delay and amidst speculations, Abdullah finally appointed, apparently at the Ruler’s insistence, Justice Hamid Mohamed as President of the Court of Appeal, and Justice Alauddin Sherif as Chief Justice of Malaya. The two are highly regarded for their integrity as well as for being apolitical and independent minded. No wonder they were not Abdullah’s initial choice!

Abdullah also appointed a private lawyer Zaki Tun Azmi directly to the Federal Court. He was on Umno’s “Money Politics” disciplinary board. Lately he was known more for dumping his young Thai bride (his second, third, fourth?) and then asking her to burn their wedding certificate that was issued in Southern Thailand. Such personal integrity! The surprise is that the Council of Rulers consented to the appointment.

Perhaps Zaki Azmi was Abdulalh’s ideal choice for a future Chief Justice. That would of course reflect on Abdullah.

The rot in the judiciary predates Abdullah. However, he had the opportunity to reverse the trend or at least stem the decline with these new appointments, but as with the massive electoral mandate he received in 2004, he squandered it.

Many are advocating for an independent Judicial Commission to deal with judges’ appointments and promotions. I disagree. Judges and the judiciary generally must be accountable to the public. While I would not have judges be elected, as in some jurisdictions in America, the current system with judges appointed by the prime minister and consented to by the Council of Rulers is a good substitute. There is no point wasting time and effort tinkering with the current system.

What is needed instead is for the prime minister to be wise in his appointments and to open the field as wide as possible. In America, federal judges are nominated by the President and then consented to by the Senate, after a public confirmation hearing. If the president were stupid enough to nominate someone equally stupid, the Senate would not hesitate to deny the confirmation, after the appropriate public humiliation of the hearings. Additionally, the Bar Associations, legal scholars, and editorial boards would never shy from voicing their opinions.

The prime minister cannot abdicate his responsibility in selecting judges. If Abdullah needs guidance (he obviously does!), I suggest that he reads Lee Kuan Yew’s memoirs. If he finds the volumes too thick and tedious, I can help Abdullah by referring him to the relevant few pages.

Waiting from directive
Elsewhere I commented on the intellectual and experiential insularity of Malaysian judges. They are almost exclusively drawn from the civil service, with minimal or no outside experience in academia, private sector, or elsewhere. They follow directives only too well.

I was stunned that Chief Justice Fairuz, when confronted with the evidence that he had promoted judges who had been delinquent with their written judgments, would write to the prime minister instead of handling the issue himself. Presumably Feiruz was awaiting arahan (directive) from the prime minister. So much for his appreciation and understanding of the concept of separation of powers!

That more than anything reflects the caliber of Fairuz. Don’t get me started on the quality of his legal writings and commentaries!

In the end it does not matter what system you have if those responsible for selecting our judges do not do the job responsibly. The rot in our judiciary is not with the system but with the personnel. The system has produced such judicial luminaries as Tun Suffian and Raja Azlan Shah. It could do it again.

亟需糾正的腐化司法制度
姚文傑

《當今大馬》07年10月9日 晚上8:09
如果首席大法官阿末法魯斯還存有任何個人榮譽和職業操守意識，他應該立刻辭職。如果首相阿都拉對自己的領導和道德還負 有些許責任，他不應該延長首席大法官即將在十月期滿的合約。如果大馬律師公會對社會還負有法律上的義務，以及自我監督的專業，在前首相安華公佈公佈臭名昭 彰的林甘影片之後，他們將會取消林甘的律師資格。

唉，從過去記錄來看，不要期望這些，這是大馬無可奈何的現實。延長法魯斯的合約是國家經不起的憲法危機—這突如其來的憲法危機是不必要且令人困惑的， 現在只好等最高元首拒絕延長法魯斯的合約。
律師公會召開了緊急會議，但並沒有採取公會許可權之內的紀律行動懲罰涉案的律師，反而選擇遊行到布特拉再也行政中心，然後將請求設立皇家調查委員會的請願書交給首相。接下來他們將會走上街頭示威。非常第三世界，跟巴基斯坦沒有兩樣！我以為那些聰明的律師會編制一些法律論說起訴政府。

首席大法官學“幽雅的沉默”

與此同時，首相阿都拉“很失望”——因為這件事曝光而失望，並非為影片的爭議性內容覺得失望。醒一醒吧，首相先生！腐敗的是大馬司法制度，不是曝光的影片。如果首相從睡夢中振作起來，他大概會下令逮捕安華！

首席大法官法魯斯學了首相聲名狼藉的“幽雅的沉默”姿態，只簡短地講了“無可奉告”。其實這並非幽雅或沉默，反而暴露了其醜陋的一面。

以該影片的錄音品質來看，那不可能是假的。以現在的偵察技術來說，任何嘗試這樣造假的人都很愚蠢。涉案的律師用手機撥電話，意味著將有不可刪除的通話記錄。我每個月的手機帳單清楚標示撥出和接聽紀錄。以該影片的品質來說，這不可能像是早前在我國發生的“裸蹲案”（nude ear squat）事件那樣被偷拍的。再說，在2002年或許也沒有那樣的儀器。

拍攝影片的動機：虛榮心作怪
既然是那樣的話，有趣的問題就是：為何要拍那影片？除卻最顯而易見的原因——愚蠢，我假設其它一些原因。

一個原因是基本人類情緒：虛榮心。如果你已經擁有了好幾百萬，當你賺取下一個一百萬時，你也就沒有什麼好吹噓的了。你需要一些戰利品，例如拿來裝飾的王室頭銜，若是回教徒就多討幾個老婆。如果你已經擁有這些戰利品，或者無法擁有，那另一個使人陶醉的夢幻就是成為一個有權支配高官的人，或者憑空幻想自己是有那般能耐的人。

身為一個律師，如果你有能力操縱高級法官的律師並且一直拿來吹噓，那你肯定是很高階的，這也加強你當超級說客的能力。除非你有影片證明自己的當年勇，否則當你年老時，你的孫子會以為你只不過患了老人癡呆症在吹牛而已。

跟虛榮心緊密相關的就是自大。所謂的謙虛，就是你能利用不當手段操縱國家司法制度而不吭聲；所謂的自大，就是你將之炫耀。涉案的林甘律師肯定是在炫耀！

或者，我不會像Lat的漫畫那樣，將這不擇手段的律師，和另一位想像中的某個大法官放進這長篇大論的文章裡，然後想像他們故意讓該影片“曝光”。這肯定可以上報章頭條。至於個中動機，眾所周知，當一群無賴有衝突時，他們常常互暴醜聞。有一個快捷的辦法可以調查：調查該影片以確定那是何時製作的。

最後一個可能性是：這可能是內鬼所為，也許是一個職員在自己還沒有窮途末路之前事先陷害雇主的詭計。看看我國律師樓是如何對待職員的，這可能性或許就可以成立。

委任巫統律師任法官惹猜疑
經過一番拖延和猜測當中，以及在王室統治者的堅持之下，阿都拉終於委任哈密莫哈末（Hamid Mohamed）法官為上訴法庭主席法官和阿拉勿丁沙裡夫（Alauddin Sherif）法官為馬來亞大法官。這兩位大法官的道德感和不涉及政治的獨立作風，向來備受尊崇。難怪他們不是阿都拉最初的選擇。

阿都拉也委派一個私人律師查基（Zaki Tun Azmi）到聯邦法院。他是巫統“金錢政治”的紀律委員會。他最近比較有名的事情是和一個年輕泰國小妾（不知道是第幾個小妾？）離婚，聽說他還要那小妾把他們在泰南簽署的結婚證書付之一炬。這種個人道德！令人訝異的是，統治者委員會竟然批准該項委任。

也許查基是阿都拉在未來的理想大法官人選，這當然會為阿都拉招致非議。

在阿都拉成為首相之前，司法制度早就腐化了。無論如何，他有機會扭轉乾坤，或至少透過新的委任來遏止司法制度繼續往下沉淪，但他辜負了選民在2004年大選中所賦予他的強力支持。

很多人提議成立一個獨立司法委員會來處理法官委任、升等事宜，我並不同意。法官和司法制度要對大眾負責。在美國的司法制度底下，我沒有法官可選。但對我而言，一個好的替代方式就是現在這個由首相提名，然後由統治者通過的制度。浪費時間來馬虎將就地修改現有制度是毫無道理的。

現在迫切需要的事情反而是首相委任法官時要放聰明一點，並且盡可能開放競爭。在美國，聯邦法官由總統提名，然後在公共聽證會之後，參議院才會批准。如果總統很笨，委任一個跟他一樣笨的人選，參議院在經過公共聽證會的聽證和公開羞辱之後，會毫不猶疑地拒絕批准該提名。另外，律師公會、法學學者和輿論也不會羞於表達他們 的意見。

首相不可以放棄他遴選法官的責任。如果阿都拉需要指導（很顯然的，他需要），我建議他讀李光耀回憶錄。如果他覺得那本書太厚、太冗長乏味，我可以告訴他該參考哪幾頁。

等待首相指示處置失職法官？
我曾在別處評論過大馬法官的智慧和偏狹的經驗。他們幾乎沒有公共服務經驗，學術、私人界或其它領域的經驗也少得可憐，甚至掛零。他們非常遵從指示。

當大法官法魯斯發現他提拔了在書寫判決書方面失職的法官時，他沒有自己處理這問題，反而竟然還寫信問首相。這讓我覺得非常驚訝。他大概是在等待上頭指示吧。他真瞭解並且維護三權分立啊！

以上幾點就反映出他的能力。不要讓我開始評論他法學文章和評論的素質！

如果有權遴選法官的人沒有盡責，到頭來不管我們擁有什麼制度都是枉然。我們的司法制度並沒有腐化，腐化的是當中的人事。這制度曾經培養出司法界裡非常傑出的人物，例如敦蘇菲安（Tun Suffian）和阿茲蘭莎蘇丹（Raja Azlan Shah），現在當然也可以再度出現司法泰斗。