More than 500 days since the abduction and still no closure.
“It is hard to go on like this.” This was the tear-filled plea made by Susanna Liew for the new Pakatan Government to solve the mystery over her husband Pastor Raymond Koh’s disappearance in February 2017.
“It has been more than 500 days since his disappearance.
“That is a long time to wait over the uncertainty over what happened.
“There is no closure,” she said while struggling to hold back tears when met after the resumption of the public inquiry into Koh’s disappearance by the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) on Monday (Aug 27).
Liew, 62, who was accompanied by her eldest son Jonathan Koh, said the wait for answers has taken a toll on her and her family.
While expressing hope in the Pakatan Government, she said she was disappointed that her requests to meet Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and Home Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin have been met with silence.
“We were told by the Attorney-General’s Chambers that the police will update the family.
“But till today, we have not been updated,” she said.
Liew said her husband’s disappearance had also gripped the nation, with the rakyat seeking answers.
“Malaysians want to know where is Pastor Koh and who gave the instructions to do all this,” she said.
Earlier, during the inquiry, Immigration Department assistant deputy director Hamid Momong testified that Government enforcement agencies could request the department to keep a record of individuals going in or out of the country.
Hamid, who is in charge of passport and security, said that the names of such individuals would appear on the department’s suspects list or blacklist.
He noted that there were two categories of individuals under the suspects’ list.
“One is where they are denied permission to leave the country such as that requested by the Income Tax Department or Home Ministry.
“The other is where we just record in our system when the individuals leave and return to the country,” he said when asked to clarify the nature of the list by Liew’s lawyer Philip Koh Tong Ngee.
Hamid added the record of the individual’s movement is then reported back to the agency which had requested for the information.
The inquiry was adjourned to Sept 3 by Commissioner Datuk Mah Weng Kwai for Hamid to produce the suspects’ list.
Koh, 62, was abducted by a group of men along Jalan SS4B/10 in Petaling Jaya on Feb 13, 2017 while on his way to a friend’s house.
CCTV footage, believed to be of the incident, showed at least 15 men and three black SUVs involved in the abduction, which was done in “professional” style.
Koh’s silver-coloured car bearing the number plate ST5515D has still not been found. – The Star