DAP calls for the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry comprising respected, eminent and independent-minded Malaysians to conduct a full inquiry on whether Israeli agents had infiltrated Bukit Aman.
It is downright ridiculous and an international joke to have four agencies probing into the same matter, as announced by the Home Minister, Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein yesterday, namely the police, the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, the National Security Council and a parliamentary select committee.
I just could not believe that Hishammuddin could make such an outrageous announcement, totally lacking in seriousness about a very important national security problem.
In the first place, who would believe that the police would be able to independently and professionally investigate into this matter, when there appears to be a tradition of lack of police independence and professionalism on sensitive issues involving the highest reaches of police and the government.
A good case in point was the 1998 “black-eyes” attack on Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim by the then Inspector-General of Police in the very inner sanctum of Bukit Aman, just some fortnight after losing his high positions as Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister.
The top police leadership even got the then Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad to declare publicly that Anwar’s “black eyes” could be self-inflicted, when Anwar was nearly beaten to death by the then Inspector-General in Bukit Aman!
Finally, only an independent Royal Commission Inquiry could delve out the truth about Anwar’s “black-eyes” assault.
Similarly, there is just no public confidence that the police would conduct and report on a no-holds-barred investigation into whether Israeli agents had infiltrated Bukit Aman – and the same applies to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency, whose public stocks have fallen even lower than ever plumbed by its predecessor, the Anti-Corruption Agency and so long as the Teoh Beng Hock mysterious death remain unresolved, MACC would never regain public confidence.
As for the National Security Council probe, who will conduct it? Again, the police and Home Ministry officials? What a farce.
What is this parliamentary select committee mentioned by Hishammuddin which would conduct the fourth probe?
Would he agree and support the establishment of a Special Parliamentary Select with the specific term of reference to investigate whether there had been Israeli agent infiltration of Bukit Aman, headed by a Pakatan Rakyat Member of Parliament, with the Police and Government opening all documentation for the probe without resort to Official Secrets Act on grounds of national security?
Would Hishammuddin agree to have me or the PAS President, Datuk Seri Hadi Awang (as Parliamentary Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim is an interested party, so to say) to head such a Parliamentary Select Committee?
I do not know whether the Cabinet has given its approval for the four simultaneous and parallel investigations by four agencies into one same issue – infiltration of Israeli agents into Bukit Aman – and if so, then it must stand as the most cock-eyed Cabinet decision in 53 years of the nation’s history.
Why are there more and more ridiculous and outrageous happenings under the Najib premiership, which had never happened or would have been completely unthinkable under the five previous Prime Ministers, like the Prime Minister launching a Barisan Nasional-United States (Congressional) Caucus in Washington next Thursday in the company of two so-called independent Members of Parliament?
I will propose in Parliament next week the establishment of a Royal Commission of Inquiry into Israeli agent infiltration of Bukit Aman in place of four simultenous and parallel investigations by four different agencies, with the composition of the Royal Commission of Inquiry the result of consultation with the Pakatan Rakyat parliamentary leaderswhip.
I hope that all the Barisan Nasional Ministers and MPs will give it support to this proposal in Parliament next week.