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Malaysia appoints new chief justice, but judicial crisis not over yet
Wan Ahmad Farid’s political ties to 1MDB scandal-hit Najib have raised concerns about judicial independence
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Malaysia has named Wan Ahmad Farid Wan Salleh as its new chief justice, a move Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said should put to rest weeks of public criticism and accusations that his government was meddling in the judiciary.
However, the new top judge’s past political ties – including to former prime minister Najib Razak – have prompted concern among critics and legal observers that his appointment could undermine public confidence in the judiciary’s independence.
Wan Ahmad Farid’s appointment was announced in a government statement shortly after midnight on Friday, alongside Abu Bakar Jais as president of the Court of Appeal and Azizah Nawawi as chief judge of Sabah and Sarawak, filling three of the highest-ranking vacancies in the judiciary.
Their appointments follow a Wednesday meeting of the Conference of Rulers, a council of state sultans and governors whose role is to scrutinise the nominations.
The delay in filling the top posts had plunged Malaysia’s judiciary into a crisis and triggered a rare protest march by nearly a thousand lawyers urging Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government to stop interfering in judicial matters.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Anwar expressed hope the appointments would end the “slander and unrest” directed at his government in recent weeks.
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