The chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, decided he would be part of the three judges, while he was around, who heard permission to appeal. In the Federal Court, Tun Eusoff sat. My lawyer asked that he be recused, but he refused, saying there were not enough judges to go around. This request was made after I had distributed photographs of he and Tan Sri Vincent Tan's lawyer and their families holidaying in New Zealand. But Tun Eusoff took the view that it did not matter as there was no further appeal. So he thought. I lost again, but I appealed to the Federal Court to reverse itself. But I could do it only after Tun Eusoff retired. I filed the appeal, with a different set of lawyers as Mr Karpal Singh felt the Federal Court would not order what I wanted, shortly before Tun Eusoff was due to be sworn in as governor of Penang. Since he was a party of a court action, he was not appointed. The Federal Court in 2003 said it would rehear my appeal. So far it has not.

Tun Abdul Hamid Omar, who succeeded Tun Salleh, started the rot. His successor, Tun Eusoff Chin, continued it. He scandalised an already scandal-proof court when photographs of him on holiday with his favourite lawyer, Dato' V.K. Lingam, in New Zealand appeared on the Internet. He and his client, Tan Sri Vincent Tan (he of the Bukit Tinggi casino fame) were also photographed with the then Attorney-General (later Federal Court judge and now comatose), Tan Sri Mohtar Abdullah, and their wives, on holiday in Italy. What added fuel to fire was Dato' Lingam's arrogance and Tun Eusoff's subservience ensured anyone before him with the other side represented by Dato' Lingam found the judicial cards stacked against him. Tun Dzaiddin Abdullah, who succeeded him with a new broom and an unsullied reputation, could not, no matter how, turn the judiciary around. What destroyed a judicial tradition of two centuries cannot be reversed in decades, let alone in two or three years.

Ultimately, the value of a title depends on who receives it. Even when it awarded as a right. The Chief Justice becomes a Tun as a right of his office. But one, the late Tun Suffian, honours the award, while Tun Eusoff Chin, devalued it. Curiously, the difference between the two men reflects also the crisis in the Malaysian judiciary: the one so proper that he would not be seen with any one under any circumstances if he has to sit in a case involving him, the other so cavalier about justice that he sees no wrong in going on holidays with lawyers and business men who have cases before him. Ultimately, even the awards are devalued because society is.

Court of Appeal Judge Gopal Sri Ram and High Court Judge R.K. Nathan were once two facets of the same problem of justice in Malaysia. Both were aligned to Chief Justice Tun Eusoff Chin, one kept quiet at the blatant injustices perpetrated until he could stomach it no more and rebelled, the other appointed in his tenure. The two barely acknowledged each other, more so after Tun Eusoff Chin, frightened of Dato' Gopal Sir Ram's new found conscience, decided Dato' R.K. Nathan instead should be Supreme Court judge after Tan Sri Edgar Joseph Jr retired. He was not. Tun Eusoff retired. Dato' R.K. Nathan transferred to Penang. The Conference of Rulers holds up Dato' Gopal Sri Ram's preferment to the Supreme Court.

But harsher methods are also used. A sitting high court judge was threatened with medicines which could induce a heart attack if he did not admit he wrote a scurrilous letter about the goings on in the judiciary under the former chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin. He caved in. And left the judiciary. Tun Saleh went because the government found an independent judiciary inimical to its continuance in office. This judge had to go because he stood up in a judiciary that caved in so completely to political demands. Judges became the handmaidens of business men and industrial tycoons and went after those their friends wanted destroyed. It was not only in the judiciary. Every institution of government is tampered with, and those who stood up to what it stood for, found themselves out by the ear. When the government's credibility depends on the strength of its institutions, they cannot deliver. And face the consequences.

When caught out, government bodies spread the blame; when that is not possible, they look for scapegoats. When the former chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, could not answer embarassing questions the de facto law minister, Dato' Seri Rais Yatim, asked about his controversial holiday with a prominent lawyer which highlighted the corruption within the judiciary, he retorted by calling him "the minister for tables and chairs". He left in disgrace.

Mr Justice Muhammad Kamil Awang, in declaring the Likas state assembly seat in Sabah vacant, said he ignored an order from his superior to strike out the election petition. He would not say who it was, though in a subsequent press conference he ruled out politicians (and therefore the Prime Minister and deputy prime minister), the present chief justice, Tan Sri Dzaiddin Mohamed; the president of the Court of Appeal, Tan Sri Lamin Yunus, said he did not; the then chief judge Tan Sri Chong Siew Feh too principled a man to indulge in such actions. That left just one man who could possibly have done so: the former chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin. And this instruction came in 1999, shortly after the Sabah elections petitions had been filed.

Tan Sri Vincent personally also claims that Ganesh had defamed him by implying in a query to the Norwegian Labor Party, that he had interefered with the independence of the judiciary to such an extent that no one challenging him in a Malaysian court could expect to win. The pictures at www.malaysia.net/special, and the story I wrote to go with the pictures, are part of Vincent's statement of claim. (These refer to photos of the former Chief Justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, and Dato' V.K. Lingam, on holidays with their families in New Zealand; and of Tan Sri Vincent, Dato' Lingam, the former Attorney-General and now federal court judge, Tan Sri Mohtar Abdullah and their wives in Rome.)

He is the second judge, who having lost their heads under the now mercifully retired chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, now come back to sanity. He was on the point of resigning when it was rumoured that under the present chief justice, Tan Sri Dzaiddin Abdullah, he would have been better off in Tawau, the favourite corner to which Tun Eusoff consigned judges he did not like. But Tan Sri Dzaiddin is not Tun Eusoff. He does not operate in vengeance. Indeed if he had, he would have been no better than his predecessor.

My grounds for the appeal include the possibility of apparent or real bias and a denial of justice under the Federal constitution due to the close friendship of Tun Eusoff Chin, the chief justice who retired two months ago, and Dato' V.K. Lingam, who represented Tan Sri Vincent Tan in the suit. (Photographs of them and their families on holiday in New Zealand are on the Internet and can be found at http://www.malaysia.net/special.) This is a rare appplication and is strengthened by the Pinochet principle in the British House of Lords, which quashed an earlier decision to extrade General Pinochet to Spain and ordered a retrial because it was learnt later one Law Lord and his wife were active in Amnesty International, one group campaigninf for the former Chilean president's extradition to Spain.

That did not stop Dato' Lingam. According to an affidvait filed in another defamation action, he helpfully wrote part or all of the judgement in that case. He is such a powerful figure that he goes on holidays with the now retired chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, and the former Attorney-General and now federal court judge, Tan Sri Mohtar Abdullah.

The Prime Minister, in his year-end interview with Bernama, cannot understand why the judiciary, under the just-retired chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, is so severely criticised. "There may be charges (against the judiciary) but they (judges) are not angels. They are not people who are perfect. So, they have their problems," he said. No one said they were angels or perfect. What one expects of a judiciary is fair play, moral and judicial uprighteousness so that those who turn to it come away satisfied, even if they lose, that justice is done. That the Eusoff Chin court could not. Business men, especially those with international reputations of unquestioned repute, subborn the judiciary and have their favourite lawyers go on holidays with the chief justice and attorner-general. The government did nothing; indeed, it extended the Tun Eusoff Chin's term by six months when he should have been told to disappear into the woodwork.

The new chief justice, Dzaiddin Abdullah, promises an open and accountable judiciary, moves swiftly to restore its tattered image and crediblity, In a stinging rebuke to his predecessor, Eusoff Chin, who retired two days ago under a cloud, he said the chief justice would deal only with policy and the chief judges the details. Tun Eusoff ignored policy and dealt with only how the courts could be run, making sure judges he did not approve of -- those who did not form his circle -- remained in the shadows. I know of at least two judges who marked time for a few years, in frustration, before they retired.

With all this hanging over his head -- and what I have mentioned is but a partial list -- he cannot afford time in an Australian court to explain how came by his empire, why he chose defamation to burnish his reputation, and answer questions that could not be asked of him in Malaysia court. He would no doubt also have to explain his role in the retiring chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin's unusual holiday arrangements with his counsel, and of his holiday in Italy with his lawyer and the Attorney-General, Tan Sri Mohtar Abdullah. What he has to say would be reported as widely here as his own cases here were. Not many in high office relishes what he could be compelled to answer. He could not have appeared in an Australian court and survive politically in Malaysia.

The new attorney-general had to be some one uninvolved in the impasse over the sacked and jailed former deputy prime minister, Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim, and Malaysia's legal kerfuffle with the UN and the International Court of Justice. The government is forced to right the wrongs in the judiciary and the legal services. It took on more than it could chew, and had substandard officers to do its bidding, whether it be the former chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, who retires today (20 Dec 00 -- the Prime Minister's birthday) and the retiring attorney-general, Tan Sri Mohtar Abdullah. The de facto law minister, Dato' Rais Yatim, accepts this. Both the new chief justice, Tan Sri Dzaiddin Abdullah, and Datin Ainum are "rule of law" people, implying that their predecssors were not. They are experiences and have integrity, he said, adding: "If their integrity is in question than the whole framework of the justice will look unclear." Yet another kick in the pants at the two retiring men.

That corruption, as boradly defined, exists in the judiciary under the about-to-retire chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, goes without saying. How could it not when he lies about his holiday with his favourite lawyer, Dato' V.K. Lingam, and sits to ensure Dato' Lingam gets the judgement he wants. And after this is public, he writes the unanimous decision in a high profile case involving Dato' Lingam and his high profile client; yet, when he reserved judgement 28 months earlier he promised individual judgements. The fish, as the judiciary, rots first in the head. Once the rot starts in the chief justice's chambers, it is a fair bet that rot would extend to the chambers of the other judges. When the anti-corruption agency investigates the chief justice, as Tun Eusoff has been, any self-respecting judge, if he values the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, would have resigned forthwith. But not Tun Eusoff. When a litigant totes out a litany of corruption involving Tun Eusoff and requests him to recuse in a federal court appeal, he refuses, and the man refuses to proceed with an appeal before a coram he is uncomfortable with. Tun Eusoff has not rebutted any of the allegations, so it is safe to say that all, if not most, of what was said is true. He singlehanded reduced the judiciary to the appalling levels it is now in.

The outgoing chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, leaves office under a cloud on 20 December, a fortnight hence. When the Conference issued that press statement, he rushed hither and thither to find out who it is. He had not been consulted, or informed, about the appointment. Constitutionally, he need not be, thought in the past his views would have been sought. It is the Prime Minister's prerogative to nominate a chief justice without reference to any. For all other judicial appointments, the chief justice's views have to be sought. As it happened, Tun Eusoff knew of Tan Sri Dzaiddin's appointment an hour or so before the press release was issued.

When the Conference of Rulers decided upon Tan Sri Dzaiddin Abdullah as Malaysia's new Chief Justice, one man who should have known did not in a none-too-subtle way to tell him enough is enough, and he would know of the appointment when everyone else is. Tun Eusoff Chin, on leave before he descends into judicial infamy on 20 December 00, heard of the appointment on Thursday morning when the Conference of Rulers met, but could not get confirmation. The Keeper of the Ruler's Seal, who should know, said a decision was awaited. The Prime Minister's Office where sits, in Tun Eusoff's considered judgement, such as it is, the Law minister in charge of tables and chairs, would not tell him either. He tried to see the Prime Minister, but the secretaries shielded him from whom he did not want to see. He could only confirm it just before the official announcement. He is furious, to say the least, and insists Tan Sri Dzaiddin's appointment is unconstitutional. Even the Devil quotes the Scriptures when it suits him. A High Court cannot sit on the Federal Court, but he had Mr Justice P.S. Gill to sit in an emergency sitting of the Federal Court in the Ayer Molek case. He knew, and I am charitable here, or should have known, he could not. He knew he should not have gone on holiday with his favourite lawyer. He knew he should not have lied when confronted about it. But then he decided justice in Malaysia is what he decides it is. So, if he breaks convention and breaches the constitution, it is in the larger interests of justice.

The Federal Court has four vacancies. The Chief Justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, wants to pack it with his cronies. But the Conference of Rulers would have none of it. So it shot down Judges Gopal Sri Ram and Mokhtar Sidin of the Court of Appeal; and later Judge R.K. Nathan of the High Court. The Conference made it known it would not consider nominations from Tun Eusoff for judicial preferment. Tun Eusoff could have had his way if he had not picked a fight with the de facto law minister, Dato' Rais Yatim, dismissing him as law minister in charge of tables and chairs. For whatever his faults, he is still, after all, chief justice, and his nominations, however flawed self-serving and peurile, carries weight. He thought he could ram the nominations down the collective throats of the Conference. He could not. But hope springs eternal in the human breast.

The Bolehland chief justice, Tun Eusoff Chin, wants women lawyers to dress conservatively; they should not wear tight slacks, figure-hugging dresses or low-cut blouses which show off cleavage. Why? "Judges, both men and women, being seated on a higher platform than the rest of the court, could easily be distracted by the overt display of the body by lawyers wearing low-cut clothes," he tells reporters in Seremban (NST, 01 November 00, p4). Malaysian judges, both men and women are so randy, he infers, that the court must act to dampen their desires! Why did he have to say this? If court decorum requires it, then why explain? Does it require a court circular? Why could not some court clerk call the offending lawyer quietly aside and whisper into her ear? But the chief justice wants to codify conduct in court, and issues a dress code, which has been changed so often that it threatens to be like the federal constitution.

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