Lawyer In Bar Election List Denies Connection With Race Based Group

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Forty-two lawyers are vying for 16 elected places in the Bar Council for 2025-2026.
PETALING JAYA: The only Chinese lawyer named in WhatsApp campaign material promoting the candidacy of 15 Malay members for the Bar Council’s elections has denied being involved in the campaign.
Cheah Poh Loon, a Kelantan-based former deputy public prosecutor, said he has not given his consent to anyone for his name to be used in such a campaign for the Bar Council elections.
He said he has nothing to do with the race-based actions of a group calling itself “Badan Bertindak Profesional Muslim”, which included his name in its 2025-2026 Bar Council election campaign list.
“Friends in the legal profession have called me to ask about my name appearing in a few candidates’ team lists, which seem to have diverse and contradicting stands.
“No one has contacted me to ask for my consent to join any of the circulated lists. I am vying for a seat independently,” he told FMT.
Cheah, however, saw a positive side to the minor polemic caused by the circulated lists, saying it showed lawyers were paying adequate attention to the Bar Council elections.
“This is because according to a conservative estimate, about 18,000 ballots (sent out to 24,000 lawyers) are never returned to the Malaysian Bar in the annual elections,” he said.
He urged all lawyers to vote without fear or favour and to relentlessly defend the independence of the Malaysian Bar and the supremacy of the Federal Constitution.
Forty-two lawyers are vying for 16 elected places in the Bar Council.
Last week, another lawyer running for election slammed the distribution of the campaign material which included his name among the 16. Al-Sabri Ahmad Kabri said he had no knowledge of who created the campaign material.
Denying any involvement in the creation and distribution of the list, he reaffirmed his unwavering commitment to the principles of fairness and professionalism.
A statement was also released by 12 of the 16 lawyers denying any link to the group allegedly campaigning for them.
They also revealed the existence of another list, named the “Star Group”, which comprised 16 candidates – two Malay members and 14 non-Malays. They were purportedly rivals to the so-called “Ultra Malays Group”.
Last week, lawyers expressed concern over elements of race and religion creeping into the ongoing Bar Council election campaign, saying it will compromise professionalism in the august body.
They also said it would defeat the council’s opposition to discrimination of any sort.
The comments arose after the 16-member list was circulated on social media containing a verse from the Quran which touched on Jews and Christians. - FMT

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