Speaker’s lawyers removed

By Shannon Teoh-The Malaysian insider

In what must surely be a first for Malaysia, the Perak state assembly comprising solely Pakatan Rakyat lawmakers vote with a show of hands on three resolutions while gathered under a shady rain tree in Ipoh. – Pic by Choo Choy May

IPOH, March 3 - Perak Speaker V Sivakumar’s legal team’s involvement in the trial over the suspension of the state executive council is over before it even began when they were removed by the Ipoh High Court.

Judicial Commissioner Ridwan Ibrahim ruled in favour of a preliminary objection by the team representing Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Zambry Abd Kadir and his six executive councillors, that as a public officer who is a member of government, the speaker should be represented by the state legal advisor or someone appointed by him.

The case continues this afternoon at 2.30pm in the judge’s chambers, where, ostensibly, an officer from the legal advisor’s office will represent Sivakumar.

Zambry’s legal team, which includes Umno legal advisor Datuk Hafarizam Harun, wants a stay of assembly proceedings pending the decision of the judge on the legality of Sivakumar’s decision to suspend the entire executive council for accepting their “unconstitutional” appointments.

Lead counsel for Sivakumar Tommy Thomas spent half an hour in the judge’s chambers along with Hafarizam and an assistant state legal advisor to argue whether Thomas and four other lawyers had locus standi to represent the Speaker.

“The judge ruled that we had no locus standi but I argued that it was an adversarial case involving different branches of government, the executive and legislative,” said Thomas, adding that in his opinion, the legal advisor only represented the executive branch.

He said that a request for a watching brief with speaking rights was also denied and so there was no point staying, adding before his team left, that they would have to consult their client before deciding their next course of action.

“We objected based on the grounds that they have no fiat, or permission, from the state legal advisor to represent the Speaker. The Speaker is a public officer. You must follow the law,” said Hafarizam.

“We want to stop this illegal assembly. You cannot have a meeting under a pokok,” he continued, referring to the assembly meeting held earlier under a tree.