KUCHING: A comprehensive study has to be done before any decision is made on the separation of the role and position of the Public Prosecutor from the Attorney General.
According to Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Parliament and Law) Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, this would include its implications for the government.
“This matter should not be taken lightly even though it has been implemented by many Commonwealth countries.
“This is because if we look at the Malaysian context, we need to amend 19 existing laws including the Federal Constitution,” he said.
Illustrating, he said amending the law related to the Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA63) had taken a long time and also the law related to the ban on MPs jumping parties.
“And for this, 19 Bills need to be amended to allow for changes or separation from the perspective of the Attorney General and the Public Prosecutor,” he said here, on Sunday.
Recently, a political scientist, Professor Wong Chin Huat had in a Malay-language daily newspaper said that the separation of the position and role of the Public Prosecutor from the Attorney General is necessary before the 15th General Election (GE15) to be free from any political interference.
Wan Junaidi said that the matter will also have implications on government expenditure because the Public Prosecutor and the Attorney General need to have separate offices, libraries and staff.
“The Attorney General must have his own office, library, staff and adviser because he can no longer share with the prosecutor. And we don’t even know how many millions are needed a year to finance this,” he said.
