Dr Mahathir Denies He Was Used By Outsiders To Appoint Top Judges

Former leader Mahathir Mohamad denied Thursday he was manipulated by outsiders into appointing top judges in a scandal that has cast doubts about the independence of Malaysia's judiciary.

Mahathir Mohamad, Malaysia's longest serving prime minister from 1981 to 2003, was testifying before a government inquiry into a secretly recorded video
clip that showed a man believed to be a prominent lawyer, V.K. Lingam, boasting that he could get key judicial appointments made with Mahathir's help.

Lawyers and opposition groups have said that the clip was evidence of deep flaws in the secretive process of appointing judges. The clip was made in December 2001 but leaked in September 2007 by opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, who has refused to say how he obtained it.

Mahathir, 84, who appeared composed during his 90-minute testimony, said he didn't even know Lingam personally until recently when he hired the lawyer to fight a defamation case against Anwar. He also disputed claims by the man in the video who is heard saying that he, business tycoon Vincent Tan and then deputy minister Tengku Adnan Mansor had contacted Mahathir regarding judicial appointments. "No," Mahathir, dressed in a gray suit and blue tie, said repeatedly when asked if the three men had a hand in the appointments.

In the clip, the man who looks like Lingam is seen and heard speaking on his mobile phone and identifying the person on the other end as Ahmad Fairuz Sheikh Abdul Halim, Malaysia's No. 3 judge in 2001. The man talks about how he allegedly helped Ahmad Fairuz get appointed and discusses plans to elevate him further with the help of Tan and Tengku Adnan. A number of other judges are also named during the conversation.

In the Malaysian system, the country's chief judge recommends candidates for senior judicial appointments and promotions to the prime minister who can accept or reject those names. The prime minister then recommends the candidates for final approval by Malaysian state rulers, which is considered a formality.

Mahathir acknowledged, however, that he is a close friend of Tan, who has been Lingam's client in several high profile cases. "I have had a relationship with him (Tan) for many years," Mahathir said. "I know him very well .... we were I would say friends," he said.

Asked whether he might have sought or obtained advice from Tan on judicial appointments, Mahathir said: "It could be." But he clarified that he receives opinions from many people including government officials, experts and members of the public regarding judicial appointments. (PR-Inside.com)
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