KUALA LUMPUR – Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Sebli has garnered widespread attention for being the sole dissenting judge in a constitutional challenge brought by a mother-daughter duo concerning 18 provisions in the Kelantan state shariah enactment.
Abdul Rahman, who is also a Federal Court judge, cynically described the duo as “busybodies” who had no legal right (locus standi) when they filed the petition to declare the provisions in question null and void.
While reading his judgment of the case last week, Abdul Rahman said the mother and daughter failed to demonstrate how the contested provisions violated their constitutional rights and emphasised that they have never been charged under the enactment.
Furthermore, he highlighted that the provisions were only applicable in Kelantan.
He also said the issue of locus standi should be clarified first because it is not appropriate for the panel to exercise its inherent jurisdiction to hear the petition, even though they have no right under the law.
Chief Justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, leading a nine-member panel of judges, delivered the majority verdict of 8-1, with Abdul Rahman being the only dissenting judge.
Tengku Maimun, in a landmark ruling, stated that 16 out of 18 provisions under the Kelantan Shariah Criminal Enactment were unconstitutional as the legislative powers of the federal and state governments have been determined by the Federal Constitution.
His decision on the case left many to ponder his background, including his journey as a judge.
Little did people know, this is not the first time Abdul Rahman has stood out as the only judge on the panel to deliver a differing judgment.
Abdul Rahman was also the sole dissenting judge in the Federal Court’s 4-1 decision to dismiss Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s bid to review its ruling in 2022 upholding his conviction for misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International. He said Najib ought to be acquitted and discharged of all criminal charges since an injustice had taken place.
In his minority ruling, he said there appeared to be a miscarriage of justice in the main appeal process when Najib was left without legal representation after his then-lead counsel, Datuk Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, said he was not prepared to submit and subsequently sought to discharge himself.
It was reported that in allowing Najib’s application, Abdul Rahman said he could only arrive at one conclusion: that the circumstances indeed warrant a review under Rule 137 of the Rules of the Federal Court of the reason an injustice has been caused against Najib.
“For all these reasons, I allow the application by the applicant. As for the consequential order to be made, in my view, the proper order would be the order of acquittal and discharge of all the offences the applicant was charged with.
“It appears to me there’s a miscarriage of justice, and the applicant was deprived of a fair hearing,” he was reported as saying.
In his judgment, Abdul Rahman said the initial main appeal panel was wrong in preventing Najib’s then-lead counsel, Datuk Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, from discharging himself from representing the former.
While serving as an Election Court judge in February 2014, Abdul Rahman also delivered a decision to dismiss a petition filed by a PKR candidate seeking to annul the results of the 13th general election (GE13). This decision ultimately allowed Barisan Nasional to retain victory in the Tapah parliamentary constituency.
Abdul Rahman’s judgment articulated that the petitioner alleged that bribery took place during GE13, but the details of the allegation were not specified.
In July 2013, Abdul Rahman rejected a petition filed by a voter to cancel GE13 results for the Lubok Merbau state assembly.
Here are some other facts about Abdul Rahman:
– Born in Sarawak on January 25, 1959.
– Obtained a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Malaya (UM) in 1983.
– Married to Puan Sri Sarbanun Mokhtar and has seven children.
– Has held the position of deputy public prosecutor of Sarawak, Pahang, Kelantan, and Kuala Lumpur.
– Appointed as senior federal attorney at the Sarawak State Attorney-General’s Department, Kota Kinabalu and Miri sessions court judge, Pahang state legal adviser, and director of the legal division at the Royal Malaysian Customs Department.
– Appointed as judicial commissioner on September 15, 2008.
– Appointed as judge of the High Court of Malaya on August 9, 2010.
– Appointed as Court of Appeal judge on September 12, 2014.
– Appointed as Federal Court judge on August 8, 2019.
– Appointed as Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak on January 17, 2023. – February 13, 2024