KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 16 — The Royal Commission of Inquiry (RCI) on Teoh Beng Hock’s death suffered a major blow to its credibility today after the family of the dead political aide withdrew from the inquiry.
The family decided to pull out of proceedings after the royal panel decided to continue the inquiry despite a proposed judicial review over the appointment of deputy public prosecutors (DPPs) as conducting officers.
It also decided that chairman Tan Sri James Foong Cheng Yuen need not recuse himself despite being a sitting Federal Court judge.
DAP chief Karpal Singh, who is counsel for the Teohs, said that the family would withdraw so as not to lend legitimacy to the commission.
“The proceedings are being rushed for reasons best known to the commission,” Karpal told reporters outside the courtroom later.
The family believe that the Attorney-General is seeking to revise the coroner’s ‘open verdict’ to one of suicide and claim that this would lead to bias by the DPPs.
The coroner’s inquest had ruled out both suicide and homicide in Teoh’s fatal July 16, 2009 plunge, after being questioned overnight by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) the day before.
Karpal said it was “inconsistent” for the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) to seek such a revision while insisting that its officers involved in the RCI were independent.
He added that the RCI was effectively an “inferior tribunal” in light of the ongoing revision proceedings at Shah Alam High Court.
He said the family would likely not proceed with the judicial review, although The Malaysian Insider understands that a final decision has yet to be made.
Processing had stalled earlier after Karpal objected to the commission’s decision to continue proceedings as it was “unfair” to the Teoh family and all involved to do so when a judicial review had been mooted.
Co-counsel Gobind Singh Deo pointed out that the commission ran the risk of “contamination of evidence”, as the evidence presented at the inquest would be compromised should the High Court rule in favour of a judicial review.
MACC lawyer Datuk Seri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah agreed that the application by Teoh’s family was an urgent matter but pointed out that it would greatly delay the RCI.
He explained that, regardless of the decision, there would likely be an appeal by the losing side that would push back commission proceedings by at least three months. The RCI intends to conclude proceedings by April 25.
The Teoh family, however, will continue to participate in the AGC’s revision of the inquest decision, which will come up for mention tomorrow.
“We will, of course, attend the revision proceedings because there the Attorney-General, it appears, wants a verdict of suicide, which I think is indefensible,” he said.
“We want a verdict of homicide because that is what the evidence discloses.”
The royal panel will visit Plaza Masalam, the site of Teoh’s death, tomorrow morning at 9.45am before resuming proceedings at 2.30pm here at the Kuala Lumpur Court Complex.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak formed the RCI last month following public uproar over Coroner Azmil Muntapha Abas’s verdict at the end of a 17-month inquest, which ruled out both homicide and suicide.
Azmil had said he could not find enough evidence to confirm that Teoh’s pre-fall injuries had contributed to the 30-year-old’s death outside the MACC’s then Selangor headquarters in Plaza Masalam, Shah Alam, on July 16, 2009.
The coroner, however, had raised doubt over whether Teoh could have exited unaided from the window on the 14th floor of Plaza Masalam before his fatal plunge following overnight interrogation by MACC officers.
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