MIRI: The amendments to various legislations with a view to removing the mandatory death penalty are expected to be tabled at the next Parliamentary sitting, said Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reforms), Ramkarpal Singh.
“….and I hope other progressive reforms will follow suit,” he said here on Friday night during a gala dinner held in conjunction with the Opening of the Legal Year 2023 for Sabah and Sarawak.
He said issues such as whether Article 121(1) of the Federal Constitution ought to be amended from its present form to what it was before 1988 to reaffirm the position of the Federal Constitution as well as the problem of children born overseas to Malaysian mothers being deprived of citizenship, were matters which certainly merit consideration and his ministry hoped to find solutions moving forward.
“As Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), it is my duty to oversee the implementation of institutional reforms in the legal profession, and of course the judiciary, from the improvement of facilities in courts throughout the country to proposing amendments to various legislation including the Federal Constitution for the betterment of society as ultimately, access to legal aid and better dispensation of justice are crucial elements in any society,” he pointed out.
Aware of the various issues raised by the Malaysian Bar at the Opening of the Legal Year 2023, Ramkarpal said he was of the view that there is much to be done in terms of reform which he shall endeavor to work towards.
“The views of the Attorney-General’s Chambers and also those of the Attorney Generals of Sabah and Sarawak are very much appreciated and will certainly be taken into account,” he assured.
Heradded that the legal profession and the judiciary were crucial in the functioning of any democratic society and their evolution was vital for Malaysia to progress towards a first-class nation worthy of competing with the best of the world.
“Such evolution must necessarily mean not only the introduction, but the implementation of reforms with the utmost priority of preserving the sanctity of the Federal Constitution,” he said.
Among those present were Minister of Transport Sarawak Datuk Sri Lee Kim Shin who represented Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg at the event, Chief Justice of Malaysia Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, former chief Justice of Malaysia and member of Judicial Appointments Commission Tun Mohd Raus Sharif, the acting President of the Court of Appeal and the Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Datuk Amar Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim, Federal Court Judge (also covering the duties of the Chief Judge of Malaya) Dato’ Mohamad Zabidin Mohd Diah and Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Department (Law ,MA63, and State-Federal Relations) Datuk Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali.
