“As for the extraordinary appointment of Apandi to the board of Tabung Haji, the timing could not have been less inauspicious,” said A Kadir Jasin in his latest blog posting.
He said it confirmed the suspicion that something abnormal was happening at the pilgrims fund. “His appointment suggests that there could have been a criminal act which, if not properly managed, could end up in court.”
Likewise, the Court of Justice may not have the chance to prove or disprove Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak’s culpability, he added. “He may be safe from prosecution for now. But despite the AG closing the case, the court of public opinion will continue to try him.
“As for all of us, we have to do some serious soul searching if we care for this country and its future.”
As for those God-fearing officers of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency (MACC), ventured Kadir, they too should search their souls. “Can they continue to serve the agency after this? It’s a matter of time before it’s taken over by the puppet-on-the-string type in order to secure and close shut what the AG announced on Tuesday.”
On another note, the veteran newsman’s advice to his younger colleagues and the rest of the despondent Malaysians was not to play God. “Let history runs its course. There are things in life that are best left to divinity.”
Kadir apologised to his young colleagues in journalism for confusing them with his hearty laughter when they asked him about the Attorney-General’s decision to absolve the Prime Minister of wrongdoing, “more so because I was laughing at their expense. I was amused by the ‘sound’ of their desperation.”
The veteran newsman doesn’t blame them because the AG’s decision, though expected, was baffling to the sane mind. “But as an older person and a journalist of more than four decades, I have seen many extraordinary and unbelievable events so as not to be stumped and stung by Apandi’s decision.”
The decision instantaneously brought to mind a similar “no case” ruling by a former AG involving sex-related allegations against former Malacca Chief Minister Abdul Rahim Thamby Chik, recalled Kadir. “It was a difficult time for us editors because Abdul Rahim was an effective Chief Minister and was much loved by then Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.”