GEORGE TOWN: Bukit Gelugor MP and DAP chairman Karpal Singh has given Chief Justice Tan Sri Zaki Azmi seven days from Feb 28 to respond to his allegations that he had bribed court officials when he was a lawyer in 1987.

Karpal said Zaki could not afford to remain silent any longer on the matter.

"Why is he silent over my very damning statements?

"If he does not respond within the seven days, it will be deemed that he accepts that he is corrupt.

"This matter has to be closed. In the past, there was no tape but now there is evidence.

"His position as Chief Justice is completely untenable now," Karpal said at a press conference at his office here on Feb 28.

Karpal said he repeated his dare for Zaki to respond or sue him for defamation if he (Karpal) was lying.

Earlier, Zaki, who attended the official opening of the Penang Court complex, was hounded by journalists for comments but left without speaking to them.

Karpal, who was also at the function, said Zaki saw him, had a smirk on his face but did not speak with him.

On Feb 27, Karpal went to Istana Negara to hand over to the King, Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin, a tape recording of Zaki's speech at the 'Integrity - the Catalyst of Sustainable Development' convention in Kuching last November.

However, the King is currently abroad.

Karpal reiterated his call that the King should convene a special rulers' conference meeting to revoke Zaki's appointment on the ground that he was corrupt, by his own admission.

Karpal alleged that in the tape Zaki stated that "it took me six months to be nice, to bribe them individually, only after that were my files attended to."

Karpal said Zaki had confessed that it was his personal experience and warned registrars and court officials to "stop this".

"How much clearer should it be? This is clearly corruption. He should not only be sacked but he should also be charged for corruption," Karpal added.

He also questioned the silence of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi after he sent him his police report on Zaki, which was lodged in November last year.

On the fracas at parliament on Feb 26, Karpal said Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia should step down for failing to protect a member of the House.

"The Speaker should have no political allegiance, and I am disappointed with his decision not to act immediately.

"A member of parliament was deterred from entering parliament and parliament could have convened as a court of law to act against the perpetrators," he added.

He reiterated that he has not made any derogatory statements against the Malay community.

"What I said should not have been twisted for political expediency," he added.