KUALA LUMPUR – Attorney-General Datuk Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar has objected to an application by three opposition MPs to appoint lawyers to hold a watching brief in former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s judicial review, arguing that they have no right to participate or raise objections, only to observe.
The judicial review concerns Najib’s claim regarding the existence of an additional document that would allow him to serve the remainder of his six-year prison sentence under house imprisonment.
In an affidavit filed on February 10, Dusuki contended that the application by opposition leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, Bersatu whip Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee, and PAS vice-president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar lacked merit. He stated that lawyers holding a watching brief cannot present arguments or engage in proceedings beyond mere observation, making their presence unnecessary.
“I truly state that if constitutional issues arise during the hearing of this judicial review application, (Najib’s) lawyer has the authority to argue on those issues without the need for the presence or arguments from the applicants in this application,” he said.
He further asserted that the three applicants are not parties to the gag order application and have no right to oppose it.
“Under any circumstances, the applicants in this application are prohibited from discussing issues in the judicial review application in the Dewan Rakyat based on Rule 23(1)(g) and Rule 36(2) of the Standing Orders of the Dewan Rakyat,” he added.
On January 22, the three MPs filed a motion seeking leave to be represented by Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun, PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan, and Zulkifli Nordin to hold a watching brief in Najib’s judicial review application.
On January 6, the Court of Appeal, in a 2-1 majority ruling, remitted the case to the high court for a full hearing after allowing Najib’s appeal against the high court’s dismissal of his application for leave to initiate judicial review.
Najib, 71, is seeking a mandamus order compelling the respondents to confirm the existence of the additional document, dated January 29, 2024.
He has named the home minister, the commissioner-general of Prisons, the attorney-general, the Pardons Board for the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, and Putrajaya; the minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), the director-general of the Legal Affairs Division in the Prime Minister’s Department, and the government of Malaysia as respondents.
The former Pekan MP is also seeking an order that, if the additional document exists, any or all of the respondents be compelled to act on it and immediately transfer him from Kajang Prison to his residence in Kuala Lumpur to serve the remainder of his sentence under house imprisonment.
On July 3 last year, high court judge Datuk Amarjeet Singh dismissed Najib’s application for leave to initiate judicial review, ruling that the four affidavits supporting his claims – including those from Umno president Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and vice-president Datuk Seri Wan Rosdy Wan Ismail – were hearsay and thus inadmissible.
Najib has been serving his sentence at Kajang Prison since August 23, 2022, following his conviction for embezzling RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd. He filed a petition for a royal pardon on September 2, 2022.
The high court originally sentenced him to 12 years in prison and a RM210 million fine, both of which were upheld by the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court. However, the Pardons Board later reduced his prison term to six years and his fine to RM50 million. – February 17, 2024