We need a truly independent judiciary

DAP National Deputy Chairman and MP for Kepong Dr Tan Seng Giaw urges the Government to ensure that the Malaysian judiciary is truly independent and efficient. It should not be unfairly influenced by party politics.

Dr Tan comments on the appointment of 16 more judges to help clear backlog of cases in the whole of Malaysia. This is a step in the right direction.

Yesterday, Chief Justice of the Federal Court Tun Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim said that following the new appointments, there were 57 High Court judges. The Federal Court judges remain at 15 and the Court of Appeal judges will be 23 with the addition of 7 new judges.

While we appreciate that there is an attempt to clear up the backlog of cases, we hope that the Government will ensure that the judiciary will not be affected by party politics.

In fact, for many years there have been complaints of political interference such as in the case of Tun Salleh Abbas. There has been calls for the review of such cases.

On the eve of the 50th Merdeka celebration, we should try our utmost to make sure that the judiciary is truly independent.

Tan Seng Giaw