Teoh Beng Hock's family has decided to boycott a Royal Commission of Inquiry they say is not aimed at digging out the truth but to serve as a sop for Prime Minister Najib Razak's administration, which has come under increasing fire for its mishandling of the suspicious death of the Selangor political officer.
The 30-year Beng Hock had died after overnight interrogation by the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission.
The MACC has been accused of torturing Beng Hock in a bid to extract false confessions that would incriminate Pakatan Rakyat leaders on graft charges trumped up by Umno leaders seeking to regain control of the Selangor state government.
"This is a slap in the face for Najib. But it is also a lesson for him not to take the rakyat for granted. We are not longer living in a feudal system where the common folk will give way to you just because you are the PM," PKR vice president Tian Chua told Malaysia Chronicle.
Najib is the head of Selangor Umno. He was overseas when Beng Hock's body was found outside the MACC headquarters in 2009, but amid public outcry he agreed to meet the Teoh family when he returned. He also gave them his personal assure of a full-scale RCI in the event that the inquest result turned out to be unsatisfactory.
After an 18-month hearing, the Coroner could only reach an "open" verdict that it was neither suicide as the MACC claimed, nor was it homicide as the Teohs believed.
Najib then reneged on his promise for the RCI, only to flip-flop when it proved to be a negative factor in last month's Tenang by-election where his BN coalition had failed to win votes from a Chinese community angered at the shoddy treatment meted out to the Teohs.
"The mainstream press has made it seem like the Teohs are too demanding when the actual fact is the family is being made to feel like they have beg for justice. This is their fundamental right and Beng Hock's right too," said Tian.
Biggest joke
The final straw came when the RCI head James Foong refused to include their forensic expert Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand on the witness list. At the same time, Foong allowed two Deputy Public Prosecutors who had participated in the inquest to join the inquiry.
The decisions sparked immediate concerns there might be bias especially when the Coroner had acknowledged Pornthip's report and also accepted her finding of a massive pre-fall neck injury that suggested manhandling akin to torture.
It is believed that Beng Hock fell from the MACC's 14th floor office to the 5th floor podium but whether he was pushed, pressured or jumped on his own accord is the key question.
“If we are supposed to have an independent investigation, the first name should be Dr Pornthip," Gobind Singh Deo, lawyer for Teoh's family, had argued on Monday.
But he could not budge the commission.
On Wednesday, Gobind told the RCI the family had instructed him to pull out from the inquiry. The group then walked out from the proceedings.
Foong - a retired Supreme Court Judge - and his committe have decided to continue with the inquiry.
"It may be a brave attempt by Foong and his group to save face, but I think it is clear to everyone the RCI will be the biggest joke," Rafizi Ramli, PKR strategic director, told Malaysia Chronicle.
The Teohs were also unhappy because Najib had refused to consult with them on the RCI or to accept any of their suggestions, which included an expanded panel of commissioners to pre-empt any manipulation or bias.
"We will not participate, because we do not wish to lend credence to these proceedings," Karpal Singh, senior lawyer assisting the Teohs, told reporters.
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