INCOMPETENT JUDGES SHOULD OPT OUT - CHIEF JUSTICE

PUTRAJAYA, Oct 30 (Bernama) -- Judges and judicial officials who feel they are unable to serve their level best should opt out for their own sake and if they decide to stay put, they should shoulder the burden in the interest of the public.

Zaki Azmi issued this reminder in his inaugural speech as the 12th
Chief Justice at the ceremony where he witnessed the swearing-in of Alauddin
Mohd Sheriff as Court of Appeal President and Arifin Zakaria as Chief Judge of
Malaya.

Alauddin took the oath of office before Court of Appeal Judge Gopal Sri Ram
while Arifin before High Court Judge T. Selventhiranathan.

Zaki, 63, formerly Court of Appeal President, was appointed as Chief
Justice
after Abdul Hamid Mohamad went on mandatory retirement on Oct 17. Alauddin's
previous posting was as Chief Judge of Malaya.

Present at the ceremony were Hamid, another former chief justice Mohamed
Dzaiddin Abdullah, Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail and other justices of the
Federal Court, Court of Appeal and High Court.

"We must always remind ourselves that our salaries are paid from the
people's pockets. However big is our interest and however uncomfortable we are
with this treatment, we must remember that the interest of the public is far
bigger," said Zaki.

He said he would not hesitate to take firm and drastic action on judges and
judicial officals who fail to honour their obligations well.
"It was these people who have tarnished the image of our judiciary
institution. If they are dishonest, they can also be regarded irresponsible," he
said.

He said such problems should be corrected without delay before it spread
and if toadying exists, "I say, stop it."

Zaki said that from his observation since a year ago, he did not doubt that
there were judges and judicial officals who had worked hard in carrying out
their duties.

"I will make sure their efforts and hardwork do not go to waste. Prove
that you deserve to be rewarded, and I will fight for you," he said.

He said the big task in front of the judiciary institution was overcoming
case backlogs and the delay in disposing of cases.

People would face injustice if there were delays in dealing with their
cases
and to tackle this, the institution needs solid support from all quarters, he
said.

Zaki also said he had not dreamt of holding the position of Federal Court
Judge which carries a very heavy responsibility before he was asked to assume
the post over a year ago.

"Not long after that, I was given the duty of the Court of Appeal
President.
Within the short time frame, I have tried to do the best of my ability," he
said.

He said not many people knew the reforms that had been implemented in the
registry division of the Court of Appeal. The registration method had been
expedited, replies to all letters were made quickly and bureacracy at the
division was presently at the minimum, he said.

He said that perhaps his experience in the commercial field made him
understand and appreciate more thoroughly administrative and management issues
confronting a department.

Zaki also expressed his appreaciation to Hamid who paved the way for him to
arrive at this stage and left an excellent benchmark for him to follow.

"Hopefully, I will not disappoint him," he said.

Zaki, whose father the late Tun Azmi Mohamed was the second Malaysian to
serve as Chief Justice, said if his father was still alive, he would have been
happy as his son was following his footsteps.

Met by reporters later, he said: "Write what I said in my speech. No need
to elaborate. I'm not a politician."