CJ Wants Judges To Overcome Negative Public Perception
(Bernama) — Judges and judicial officers must overcome negative public perception in terms of rendering justice according to the law, Chief Justice of the Federal Court Tan Sri Zaki Tun Azmi said Friday.
He said negative public perception of the Malaysian judiciary was unjustified and the media was of no help.
"The media, traditional or online, has spared no mercy in their criticisms of the courts.
"We need to erase, once and for all, from the minds of members of the public that, firstly, appointments and promotions of judges and judicial officers are at the whims and fancies of one person.
"And secondly, that justice can be bought for value in our courts," he said at the launch of the Legal Year 2009 for Sabah and Sarawak here.
Zaki also said that addressing the negative perception from the public was the first limb of the establishment of the Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC).
"Given time, I'm sure that the commission will be able to function and achieve its primary objectives," he added.
Meanwhile, Zaki hoped that the courts would look for other modes to resolve the backlog of cases due to the large volume of pending cases as confining themselves to the traditional approach in the disposal of cases would not help much.
"We no longer have the luxury of time. Litigants expect the courts to hear pending cases and deliver pending judgments within the shortest time possible," he said.
During his tenure, Zaki hopes to ensure that accused persons will not stay in prison cells or lock-ups a day longer than necessary.
"If an accused person is allowed to linger inside a lock-up or prison cell for months and years, it is no longer justice to him if he is finally acquitted of the charge or charges against him," he said.
