KUALA LUMPUR – The government will not remove former AG Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali from the special task force reviewing Pulau Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge, despite Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s assertions of a conflict of interest on the matter.
Law Minister Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar, in a statement, said the government is of the view that there were “no issues” that arose from cabinet’s decision to appoint Apandi as chairman of the task force, as its formation was done with “due consideration”.
Wan Junaidi said although he was disappointed with Dr Mahathir’s refusal to cooperate with the task force, the latter will continue its commitment to producing a final report on the legal issues surrounding the three sites, as well as the then PH-led government’s move to withdraw the application for review on the status of Batu Puteh at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2018.
The minister said any objection related to the chairman’s appointment should have been done earlier, as it has already been carrying out work on its interim and final reports for the past seven months.
“It is impossible for me to act arbitrarily and without justification in removing Tan Sri Apandi bin Ali as the chairman when cabinet had already decided on his appointment,” Wan Junaidi said.
Yesterday, Dr Mahathir turned up at the AGC for an interview session with the panel but refused to carry on with the session after finding out that Apandi was the chairman.
Dr Mahathir claimed he had previously sought an explanation on why Apandi was leading the task force, insisting that the latter should be a witness instead.
In response, Wan Junaidi said the task force merely wanted to listen and obtain views regarding the situation in 2018, which led to the government withdrawing the case at the ICJ.
He added that Dr Mahathir was aware of Apandi’s appointment and can refuse to attend the session.
Last week, Dr Mahathir – in clariying a recent speech he made about Malay territories – said he was not advocating for Malaysia to claim lost territories such as Singapore or the Riau islands.
“The report on what I said at the meeting with Malays is not accurate. I am not asking Malaysia to claim the land that we had lost.
“I am trying to point out that we are so concerned over losing a table-size rock but not about bigger parts of Malaysia when they were taken from us.
“Losing Pulau Batu Puteh is no big deal. It was the mistake of the Johor government to deny that the rock belonged to Johor. Had that denial not been made, there would be no dispute now.
“We should be grateful that the world court awarded Pulau Ligitan and Sipadan to us. They are much more valuable than Pulau Batu Puteh – just a rock outcrop. We should be thankful that Indonesia has not disputed the award. Really, we are not grateful for our gains.”
Dr Mahathir was referring to Malaysia’s dispute with Singapore over Pulau Batu Puteh or Pedra Branca, which now falls under the jurisdiction of the island republic.
For Pulau Ligitan and Sipadan, in 2002, the ICJ ruled both islands off Borneo fall under Malaysian sovereignty. The decision was disputed by Malaysia and Indonesia. – The Vibes, June 29, 2022
