“An investigation would not reveal anything more than what we already know. In my view, we need to look at restoring the integrity of the judiciary.”
Zaid Ibrahim, De facto Law Minister, on a judge’s revelation *(a must read) of direct executive interference in the judiciary.

After the VK Lingam tape, a High Court judge has now come out into the open about the devious undercurrents maligning the Malaysian judiciary.

Justice Ian Chin’s account of how the government, particularly during the rule of Mahathir Mohamad, pressured judges into siding with state interest is damning in hulk proportions.  He offers, before he sat to hear a petition regarding one constituency’s results of the March 8 elections, that his position of neutrality could be perceived as contentious because of previous run-ins with the ruling Barisan Nasional government.

Among other things, Chin has claimed Mahathir “berated” a couple of his judgments, that he was sent to a  correctional “boot camp” thereafter, and how the “Sword of Damocles” has been dangling over his (and possibly other judges’) neck ever since.

Interestingly, the law minister Zaid Ibrahim has rejected the possibility that Chin’s claims be probed.  Yet, instead of dispelling the contents of Chin’s revelations, he has went on to further confirm and corroborate that, indeed, we have a tainted judiciary.

If an investigation will not reveal “anything more than we already know”, what is it exactly that we already know?  That your government not only fix judges, that they are pressured into worshiping your instructions?

“Another investigation, inquiry or commission will just reveal what we have revealed before. I think we should move on and not waste more (of) taxpayers’ money,” he said.

Move on? How condescending can that be? Is Zaid telling the rakyat to forget about Mahathir, his wrongdoings, and just support Abdullah’s promises, since they don’t like each other anyway?  What sort of reform is this?

For starters perhaps, Zaid and Abdullah can tell us what and where we should be moving on from.  There’s no point preaching a heavenly destination when you cannot admit the dump Malaysian democracy is in right now.

You don’t restore trust by sweeping more crimes under the carpet, and hope we forget.  We never will.