Inquest video of MACC lawyer buylling Pornthip not uploaded

Segambut MP Lim Lip Eng has thrown the book at the Attorney-General for not uploading the latest video clip of the inquest proceedings of the late Teoh Beng Hock, accusing his chambers of trying to hide the way it tried to bully Thai forensic expert Dr Pornthip Rojanasunand.

“Why not the latest recording? The latest recording is supposed to be the funniest, full of surprises and our government lawyer will be the laughing stock in the whole legal profession and the whole world. So they purposely tried to hide it,” Lim told a press conference on Wednesday.

Lim was among the lawyers involved in the Teoh Beng Hock case since his body was discovered on July 16, 2009, after overnight interrogation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission in connection with a graft probe on several DAP leaders.

Amid public outcry and accusations of a government cover-up, the AG had last year promised transparency and that it would upload the video tape of each inquest proceeding on its website at www.agc.gov.my .However, it has not done so for the latest hearing which took place on August 18.



Making a mockery of themselves and the country

Last week, Dr Pornthip flew in to testify at Teoh's inquest, flustering the MACC because her forensic findings show Teoh’s death was homicide while the federal-government agency has been insistent it was suicide.

The MACC, together with the Attorney-General’s Chambers, has tried hard to discredit Pornthip because of her popularity with the Malaysian public. In her country, Pornthip is rated as the most trusted individual in the whole of Thailand, according to a recent Reader’s Digest poll.

But Malaysian authorities have mocked her, and a Cabinet minister even called her a liar. Few Malaysians were surprised when at last week’s inquest, she was subjected to brutal cross-examination.

The MACC prosecutor Abdul Razak Musa denigrated her academic qualifications and at one point even asked her where the weapon was if it was not suicide. But Pornthip held up well despite Abdul Razak’s belligerence.

She also impressed Malaysians by the way she answered his questions and stole the day when she refused to retaliate to his needling that her testimony was biased because she was hired by Beng Hock’s employers - the Selangor government,

"You have to understand. I work for the rights of the dead, not the Selangor government. My objective is to help the dead," said Pornthip, drawing loud applause from the courtroom.