Equal justice, rule of law and Najib Razak
It appears that the Washington Post won’t accept any suggestion that the PM is innocent
Rahim Zainuddin, Free Malaysia Today
“Equal justice under law” is a phrase emblazoned on the front of the United States Supreme Court building in Washington DC and in the heart of every right-thinking American lawyer. It is an expression of the belief that persons accused of a crime have the right to be charged and tried fairly in court before judgement is made.
Yet, going by the Washington Post’s recent editorial, Prime Minister Najib Razak is not entitled to that right. He was only ever deserving of a trial by media, and has already been convicted and sentenced to life without possibility of golf with President Obama.
The editorial appeared shortly after the tabling of the Public Accounts Committee’s (PAC) report in Parliament on Thursday. It seems quite clear that the Post will not accept any suggestion that Najib is innocent.
Never mind that an opposition politician who sat as Vice- Chairman of the PAC was prepared to do just that. Tan Seng Giaw told the press that the persons who should be probed over the 1MDB fiasco were the directors and managers of the company, not the Prime Minister.
“That will be the correct thing to do,” he said. “Legally speaking, how can you take action against people who have done nothing? This is the rule of law. You can’t condemn a person until he has been proven guilty.”
The Post, however, seems to have its own take on the rule of law.
