THE MADANI national unity government should be praised for undertaking reforms on the legislative end, such as the abolition of the mandatory death penalty, the decriminalisation of attempted suicide, and the implementation of the 'Esha Clause' to tackle cyberbullying.
Jelutong Member of Parliament RSN Rayer said that access to legal representation under the recently passed Legal Aid & Public Defence Act 2026 and the attempt to limit the tenure of the Prime Minister to only two (five-year) terms were among the efforts geared towards reforms.
However, these sincere efforts in attempting to bring about national legal reforms have been overshadowed by misfeasance in the public office, said Rayer.
The following are a few examples, Rayer cited.
i) The Pamela Ling case, where a Malaysian woman who was on her way to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption headquarters in Putrajaya went missing in broad daylight, and her whereabouts until today remain a mystery.
ii) The Durian Tunggal, Melaka shooting incident, where three Malaysians were shot dead in cold blood by the police.
Despite numerous demands by Members of Parliament from both sides and even Digital Minister Gobind Singh Deo recently, the Home Ministry remains silent, and no one has been charged in court.
iii) Failure to abolish the archaic Sedition Act 1948 left behind by British colonists.
iv) The corporate mafia scandal. What's next?
v) Deaths in military, police and cadet training camps caused by bullying and inhumane cruelty.
The most recent involving private Muhammad Amirul Raziq Rosafindi, who died following a brutal physical assault by a corporal over a poorly cleaned weapon store at the Royal Malay Regiment Camp in Bentong, Pahang.
vi) The failure to locate, arrest and charge Tamim Dahri, who mocked and defiled the Hindu religion by stepping on the 'trisul', in Langkawi, Kedah.
Despite repeated demands for swift action, the Inspector General of Police and the home minister have failed to give a convincing explanation as to why Tamim Dahri remains at large.
Tamim Dahri continues to mock the police and ridicule them by occasionally posting comments on his Facebook page.
vii) The recent National Human Rights Commission (Suhakam)'s findings on the circumstances surrounding the death of Gan Chin Eng, an inmate detained in Taiping prison.
The medical report tendered during the Suhakam inquiry showed abdominal injury due to blunt trauma and coronary atherosclerosis caused when he was assaulted during the incident.
Many other inmates also suffered serious injuries, such as broken rib cages and eardrums, as a result of assaults inflicted upon them by prison officers during the same incident. No one has been charged until today.
Rayer said that unless the Home Ministry under the present government dares to take the bold step of charging every single individual responsible for all the misfeasance mentioned above, the 'deep state' will always prevail and derail any sincere attempts to bring about legal reforms.
Legislation alone may not be enough; the unity government has to address these issues quickly, said Rayer. - June 2, 2026.
