The recent statement by Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Ibrahim Ali that lawyers may be barred from becoming politicians is surely uncalled for. One has good reasons to suspect that the government has ulterior motives, that the proposal constitutes a mala fide move stemming from the ruling party's sense of insecurity in the face of many lawyer politicians fearless and capable enough to win the approval of the people at large. It is this honorable pledge to fearlessly uphold justice that sets lawyers apart from other professions. Thus, not only that lawyers are not unfit to be politicians, in fact they are one of the best classes of professionals to be politicians. One may even justifiably go to the extent of saying that lawyers have the duty to become politicians, since participating in law-making process is the surest and most direct way to uphold justice.
Politicians are legislators who make law.
This is especially important in a country upholding the rule of law. Lawyers, by their training, understand more than anyone does the importance of this most basic principle in modern civil, democratic nations. If the lawyer politicians are not abiding by their profession, the Bar Council will take appropriate actions against them, whether or not they are politicians. The Bar Council will be quick to protect the people by disbarring any lawyers found to be unfit to practice. On the other hand, similarly if the lawyer politicians are not properly discharging their duty as a representative of the people, the aggrieved electorates will soon force them out of their public position.