So, it’s official – we finally have a new Attorney-General (AG), and he’s already reported for duty on his first day in office today (6th June).
Tommy Thomas, who was just appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong yesterday (5th June), arrived at the Attorney-General Chambers in Putrajaya earlier today, and was met with a crowd of reporters questioning him about his plans.
Thomas outlined three main priorities he will be focusing on as AG. Here’s what he will be working on with immediate effect;
1. Taking action against wrongdoers in the 1MDB scandal
Source: NST
Speaking to reporters outside the AG’s office, Thomas said that his first priority as Attorney-General would be to institute criminal and civil action against the alleged wrongdoers involved in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal.
He was quoted by Channel NewsAsia as saying,
“The government’s first and immediate priority is all matters pertaining to 1MDB. I have studied all the papers in that scandal. We will institute criminal and civil proceedings in our courts against the alleged wrongdoers.”
“There will be no cover ups. We will immediately contact our counterparts and other jurisdictions to extend our full cooperation and assistance to them, in all matters related to 1MDB with the objective of having return to Malaysia the billions stolen from tax payers,” he added, according to the Malay Mail.
2. Repealing specific laws
Source: The Malaysian Insight
According to the Malay Mail, Thomas’ second item on his agenda as AG is to repeal a long list of oppressive laws, saying,
“The prime minister has already announced the end of GST and anti-fake news (Act), but the list of such laws is long and the AG chambers have to take steps to repeal them, either in whole or in part on an urgent basis.”
3. Probing international deals made by the previous government
Source: Malay Mail
In a report by The Star, our new AG’s third priority is to investigate deals made by the previous Barisan Nasional government, such as international contracts and other obligations involving foreign countries.
“We have to ascertain if (the contracts) are lopsided against the interest of Malaysia.”
So, it looks like our new AG definitely has a lot of work cut out for him. We wish Tommy Thomas all the best and hope he can carry out his tasks with the utmost transparency!
Also read: 6 Things You Should Know About Tommy Thomas, Malaysia’s Potential New AG
