When Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim reacted to Raja Petra's expose on Justice Dato' Nazlan Ghazali's wrongdoing and MACC statement claiming they are authorised to investigate corruption allegations against judges, Tun Dr Mahathir was not chorusing with the rest.
He was not attacking MACC as meddling into judicial affair or questioning their authority to investigate or latest narrative of judicial intimidation. Neither did he attempt to deny Nazlan is conflicted nor vouch for his innocence.
Instead Mahathir strangely went into another of his typical tantrum on Dato Seri Najib on twitter. He labelled Najib as corrupt and accused his generous social program for rakyat well being as cash-is-king bribery.
Najib was painted as wasteful and spendthrift. Actually Mahathir still need to convince the unconvincing public that Najib deserved to be mistreat and any wrong in the judicial process is justified. Mahathir was in fear his judicial past will catch up on him.
Indeed about 10 days earlier, Government announced off court settlement of RM2.3 million to Tan Sri Apandi Ali's lawsuit for wrongful termination as AG in June 2018. It was another of his past sin on the judiciary. He has lots more haunting him.
This morning he expressed his protest to the government's decision on twitter again. He must have given up on blog and Facebook.
Mahathir admitted of being accused of bad intention and ignoring the civil service rule for firing Apandi. And he claimed he made the decision in view of Apandi being an UMNO lawyer that he is not independent and bias in his decision on SRC investigation.
Since the April 13 decision, it took him 23 days before he could come up with a basis to protest the compensation. The best he could was to demand government not keep the agreement a secret.
It will only embarrass him. This was a clear cut breach of contract case.
The government had renewed Apandi contract for another three years to commence on July 28th 2018. It was reported by Utusan Malaysia (above).
The palace too gave a statement on June 3rd 2018 that there is no termination of Apandi's contract.
However, Mahathir arbitrarily announced earlier to terminate his contracts on May 12th 2018. So there is no secret deal but him expelling a member of the judiciary without due process. AG Chambers knew Mahathir and government were at fault for dismissing Apandi.
So much for the arguments by opposition and pro-opposition lawyers claiming Nazlan could only be investigated upon the decision of a tribunal. That is only applicable for matters involving ethics. There was no tribunal formed that made a decision Apandi had acted unethically to warrant termination.
If Mahathir is unhappy that Apandi decided no case against Najib on SRC and called him bias, he could explain himself why prosecution withheld evidence that disprove prosecution case that the money in Najib account in the SRC case originated from KWAP.
Dato Gopal Sri Ram could be guilty of fabricating a case. He was unethically operating and directing investigation at MACC in which judges are aware the case was not completely investigated. Tan Sri Idrus Haron may have thought so too, but no silence as a mouse.
In the SRC case, Mahathir, through his coterie of judicial manipulators of Gopal and apparently even involving Tun Daim, removed the presiding judge and placed a first time criminal court judge to do the case.
It was Daim who was assigned to call the then CJ and President of the Court of Appeal to demand resignation. Gopal pretended to go on media to protest the improper removal. So much for demanding tribunal and being independent.
More on that in another posting.
Ambiga and other past Bar Council Presidents attempted to defend Nazlan with the line it is an attack and intimidation on judiciary using MACC.
Unfortunately, it is only reopening the past VK Linggam judicial scandal of judge fixing. Mahathir's name resurfaced as one of the six recommended by 2011 RCI for further action in which Pak Lah was too coward to do so. It can still be done.
In fact, one of Bar Council President that spoke is a known runner for the Dato Eusoff Chin implicated in the Linggam Tape. Ambiga is niece to Gopal Sri Ram and another Bar Council President is also a known runner for a judge.
There are many renown senior lawyers who are clones of VK Linggam. The reason why young lawyers in the Bar Council complain of the cartel of senior lawyers. Maybe they know or not, it because of the their collusions with judges.
The old fox must have been really nervous when Anwar started defending Nazlan. Its only opening his Pandora box of judicial sin. From Salleh Abas to Nazlan Ghazali, Mahathir's sin of manipulating the judiciary is a long list.
Since Tan Sri Vincent Tan is mentioned, why was his son let of the hook by Tommy Thomas for the marijuana plants found in his house but yet singer Yasin Sulaiman is being charged and possibly could face a death sentence for having less number of marijuana plants at home.
Where was Syed Saddiq when he needed him most.