Malaysia’s top two judiciary positions are vacant after Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat retired as Chief Justice on Wednesday (Jul 2), and Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim retired as the President of the Court of Appeal a day later.
Malaysia’s third-ranked judge, Chief Judge of Malaya Hasnah Mohammed Hashim, will take on the duties of the Chief Justice following Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat’s retirement on Wednesday (Jul 2).
Judge Hasnah will exercise the powers of the Chief Justice “until that position is filled”, said the Chief Registrar’s Office of the Federal Court of Malaysia on Thursday.
Malaysia’s top two judiciary positions are vacant after Tengku Maimun retired as Chief Justice when she turned 66 on Wednesday, and Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim retired as the President of the Court of Appeal when he turned 66 a day later.
Judge Hasnah reached the mandatory retirement age of 66 in May, but her term was extended by six months until mid-November by Malaysia’s king.
The Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak, Abdul Rahman Sebli, will retire this month when his six-month extension ends.
The statement by the Chief Registrar’s Office did not mention the role of the Court of Appeal president, but it added: “The Malaysian Judiciary remains steadfast in carrying out its responsibility as the guardian of justice and will continue to serve the people and the nation with utmost dedication.”
The judicial vacancies at the highest level have caused disquiet in Malaysia’s legal and political circles.
On Monday, the Malaysian Bar slammed the “silence and indecision on matters concerning the highest level of the judiciary”, calling it “indefensible” and a “failure in institutional responsibility”.
“A breakdown in governance risks damaging public confidence in the judiciary and opens the door to speculation and unhealthy conjecture,” said Malaysian Bar president Mohamad Ezri Abdul Wahab, whose body comprises the country’s 21,400 advocates and solicitors.
The Democratic Action Party (DAP), which is part of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s governing coalition, on Tuesday called for a six-month extension for Tengku Maimun and Abang Iskandar “given their contributions and performances”.
There will be “many vacancies left in the Federal Court due to the recent and impending retirements of Federal Court judges”, the DAP’s central working committee said in a statement.
CNA reported in February that nine of the 14 judges of the Federal Court, the country’s apex judicial body, are reaching the retirement age within months of each other.
Extending Tengku Maimun and Abang Iskandar’s terms would “ensure a smooth transition of new appointees to the Federal Court in due course”, the DAP committee added.
However, Communications Minister and government spokesperson Fahmi Fadzil said the Cabinet did not deliberate in detail on the appointment of a new Chief Justice during its meeting on Wednesday.
The Cabinet meeting was chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as Anwar is currently on a week-long working visit to Italy, France and Brazil, Fahmi said, as reported by news outlet Malay Mail.
PRIME MINISTER’S ROLE IN APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES
The Chief Justice is appointed by the king, also known as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, on the prime minister’s advice and after consultation with the Conference of Rulers made up of the heads of the country’s royal households.
Malaysia established a Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) in 2009 that proposes qualified judicial candidates to the prime minister.
The JAC Act was meant to ensure that the selection process of judges would be unbiased, but lawyers told CNA previously that, in practice, new appointments often attract intense lobbying by politicians and segments in Malaysia’s royal households.
There has been talk that Terrirudin Mohd Salleh – Malaysia’s former Attorney General who was appointed to the Federal Court in November 2024 with the backing of Anwar –is being promoted by politicians and segments of the royal households to be the next Chief Justice, CNA reported in February.
In April, then-Chief Justice Tengku Maimun said removing the prime minister’s role in the appointment of judges could free it from any perception of political influence.
There have been proposals to amend the JAC Act 2009 and the Federal Constitution to remove the role of the prime minister in the appointment of judges, she said in a speech at the 24th Commonwealth Law conference in Malta, as reported by news site Free Malaysia Today.
“Such changes, in my view, would reinforce the impartiality of the selection process, ensuring that judicial appointments remain firmly grounded on merit and free from any perception of political influence,” she said.
