Can Latheefa Koya tame the beast?

“However, that does not mean he is legally guilty in the eyes of the law. Najib and his wife Rosmah Mansor remain innocent until the court passes a verdict of guilty.”

- Latheefa Koya

COMMENT | Where do we begin with the appointment of Latheefa Koya as the new MACC chief? For a start, we begin by putting our cards on the table. I will go first.

I am one of those people who hopes that Latheefa will play a constructive role in creating a new Malaysia in her new job. I am realistic – pessimistic may be a better word – that there is only so much she can do in two years and political agendas will define her reality, not legal ones. This is the nature of big picture politics.

The quote that opens this piece reflects this. Latheefa was responding to DAP veteran Lim Kit Siang’s rather preposterous notion that “innocent until proven guilty” should not apply to former premier Abdul Najib Razak because he lost the election. In making this rebuttal, Latheefa established herself – in the mind of this writer at least – as one of the few political operatives who would buck the party line and engage in rhetoric other than partisan-based nonsense.

Keep in mind that in an interview with Malaysiakini, Latheefa described herself as a political activist, ("By the way I prefer to be called a 'political activist' than a 'politician') hence she would (or should) appreciate all this noise coming from certain quarters who are concerned in the way how she was appointed. Her remarks past and contemporary demonstrate that even Latheefa thinks the process is important and this is not merely “noise”.

Mahathir was acting...