YOURSAY | Amazingly lucid explanation on Sulu claim by ex-AG

YOURSAY | ‘Will the govt acknowledge and take the actions proposed?’

COMMENT | Explaining the Sulu claim

Hrrmph: This article by former attorney-general Tommy Thomas confirms that many problems are solvable if examined by an intelligent mind.

It takes a skilled lawyer, in fact, any professional in any field, to understand, solve and explain a seemingly complicated issue to the rest of us. Each part - first to understand, then to solve and finally to explain - takes skill. I have met many a capable person who fails utterly to explain properly.

A good lawyer, by its very definition, explains well or he fails in court. Thomas confirms why he is one of this country's top lawyers. So, one wonders why the clampdown on debating the issue in Parliament.

The inevitable conclusion is that the ministers in charge were not capable, or could not be bothered, to learn and explain. Perhaps this is not surprising.

At every stage and place in our lives, it is embedded deep in our culture to never question. Child to parent, student to teacher, congregation to priest/iman, we should not question our "betters".

Careful thought is needed to explain well. This process enriches both sides. That is how we innovate and deal with future problems.

"There is an underlying but unmistakable imperialist arrogance in the actions of (Spanish arbitrator Gonzalo) Stampa as well as the French and Spanish courts in purporting to exercise jurisdiction over the Government of Malaysia," said Thomas.

I agree. I hope the government will pursue all means available to bring the unprincipled people to book. And to teach the Western world that we should not be bullied so easily.

See, all it takes is a logically coherent explanation on the matter to bring Malaysians strongly behind the country.

Instead, the various politicians prefer to use this as another reason to fling mud at each other, whilst leaving the rest of us clueless and frustrated.

MS: With this amazingly lucid explanation by Thomas of what happened, how it happened and what remains to be done, two facts have become abundantly clear.

1. Thomas is one of the best legal minds to have occupied the chair of attorney-general.

2. Former prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, the convicted felon, and his coterie of ill-educated advisors in 2013 are solely responsible for what was their petulant and puerile reaction to the Lahad Datu debacle.

Had they been more circumspect and had relied on proper legal advice, they could have avoided damaging the country in the manner they did.

As if the crooked 1MDB outing was not enough to damage the country's reputation.

Kim Quek: Thanks to Thomas for comprehensively stating the history and legal aspects of the Sulu issue, though I have reservations about some of his advice.

What has struck me is the absurdity of the entire episode.

Why should a sovereign state be held at ransom to pay an astronomical sum over an agreement between a sultan and a company signed one and a half centuries ago when both the sultanate and the company already ceased to exist a long time ago?

In the first place, there is no proper legal status for the self-professed descendants of Sulu sultan to make such a claim; neither is Malaysia the legal entity answerable to the claim, as it is not even remotely connected to the British North Borneo Company which was the party to the agreement.

Now that a dubious Spanish arbitrator has issued an absurd award in a French court under highly questionable circumstances, the Malaysian government will have to adopt a smart strategy to squash this preposterous stunt. In doing so, I hope the fundamental truism I mentioned above will be taken into consideration.

Dr Raman Letchumanan: Thomas through this article has clearly explained the issue and action to be taken. So, Dewan Rakyat speaker Azhar Azizan Harun, where is the sub judice, and what government strategy has been revealed in the ‘expose’?

It seems the government has no strategy at all, and that is why you are protecting the government. The only way you know is to shut down anything the opposition proposed.

So, what purpose has the hotel briefing achieved? Did attorney-general Idrus Harun explain the way Thomas wrote here? Obviously not, as many of the attendees were not happy.

Will the government acknowledge and take the actions proposed here? Or will it still appoint a special task force headed by former attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali?

The problem is that the government now views Thomas as enemy number one. But to whose detriment? Only the voters can wise up.

I should add that being a layperson, not having inside knowledge, I defended the decision by Thomas to offer the settlement, using layman common sense. Thomas has confirmed that.

But Najib goes to town painting it red, claiming Thomas has essentially sold Sabah to the claimants and betrayed Malaysia.

World Citizen: Thank you, sir, for this detailed explanation of the issue. I am sure people are much better educated on the issue after reading your article. There is only one area I would dispute. You assert that the case is in the good hands of the current attorney-general.

Many people are not confident of his ability to handle this case. I agree that a task force is not the right way to go as discussions and decisions will be clouded.

There are a few very good lawyers in our country and they should be deployed to handle this case with you as an advisor in the background. This is a case of national sovereignty and we should get only the best to argue our case.

The Wakandan: I shudder to think that this country is indeed in safe hands. I doubt the ability of our chief legal adviser Idrus to defend Malaysia’s interests,.

God helps us that we leave it to him to defend our interests against the wily, devious international rogues like arbitrator Stampa and US lawyer for Sulu claimants Paul Cohen.

One key point in Thomas' disclosure was Najib’s failure to issue a public statement rationalising his decision to terminate the yearly payment to the Sulu’s heirs, according to the 1878 grant.

Or he could, but he didn’t, file an action in the High Court of Sabah at Kota Kinabalu against the Sulu claimants seeking an order to forfeit their right to receive future payments and that the 1878 grant had ceased to operate.

Stampa and Cohen might be rogues, but Najib did not do anything to stop them. Instead of seeing a closure to this claim, it has been made to fester until today.

Jarchin: I truly hope that the big wigs in the Attorney General’s Chambers read this fine analysis by Thomas.

But more importantly, they should be able to understand the nuances stated therein and take immediate appropriate action. Not just to prevent the seizure of Malaysian properties overseas, but also to safeguard Malaysian judicial independence and integrity.

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