MIRI, Jan 14: The amendments to various legislations with a view to removing the mandatory death penalty are already underway and are expected to be tabled at the next Parliamentary sitting, says Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for Law and Institutional Reforms Malaysia Ramkarpal Singh s/o Karpal Singh.
“….and I hope other progressive reforms will follow suit,” he disclosed on Friday night in Miri during a gala dinner held in conjunction with the Opening of the Legal Year 2023 for Sabah and Sarawak.
He added, issues such as whether Article 121(1) of the Federal Constitution ought to be amended from its present form to what it was before 1988 and whether the Federal Constitution ought to be amended to overcome the problem of children born overseas to Malaysian mothers being deprived of citizenship, are matters which certainly merit
consideration and his ministry is hope to find solutions moving forward.
“As Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), it is my duty to oversee the implementation of institutional reforms in the legal profession, and of course the judiciary, from the improvement of facilities in courts throughout the country to proposing amendments to various legislation including the Federal Constitution for the betterment of society as ultimately, access to legal aid and better dispensation of justice are crucial elements in any society,” he pointed out.
Aware of the various issues raised by the Advocates the Malaysian Bar at the Opening of the Legal Year 2023 in Putrajaya earlier this week, Ramkarpal said he is of the view that there is much to be done in terms of reform which he shall endeavor to work towards.
“The views of the Attorney-General’s Chambers and also those of the Attorney Generals of Sabah and Sarawak are very much appreciated and will certainly be taken into account,” he opined.
The legal profession and the judiciary are crucial in the functioning of any democratic society, and their evolution are vital for us to progress towards a first-class nation worthy of competing with the best of the world.
“Such evolution must necessarily mean not only the introduction, but the implementation of reforms with the utmost priority of preserving the sanctity of the Federal Constitution,” he said. — DayakDaily
