There are those in Malaysia that believes that the Public Prosecutor is NOT INDEPENDENT - and will do whatever the government of the day 'orders' - I choose to want to believe that the Malaysian Public prosecutor is INDEPENDENT, and will always act professionally... in the administration of criminal justice.
They will not 'sabotage their own cases by failing to submit all evidence - whereby court will at the end of the day will be unable to find the accused guilty....because prosecution failed to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
They will NOT simply discontinue cases mid-stream, and the end result maybe that the court will acquit the accused - thus that accused can never ever be charged again for the same offense.
Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi has sent a representation to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) to have his graft charges dropped, the Kuala Lumpur High Court was told.
It is true that any accused can sent a representation to the Public Prosecutor at any time, and the Public Prosecutor is duty bound to consider the representation and decide - i.e. to 'discontinue' prosecution, or continue with prosecution.
Attention on this case is high because the ACCUSED here is the now new Deputy Prime Minister and current leader of the Barisan Nasional and UMNO.
What be interesting is the words used in several media reports, ... instructed by whom?
He[Deputy Public Prosecutor Abdul Malik Ayob] also confirmed that the prosecution was instructed not to object to a postponement. - Straits Times, 10/4/2023
He also confirmed that the prosecution was instructed not to object to a postponement. - Star
So, the question is - WHO INSTRUCTED THE PROSECUTION NOT TO OBJECT TO THE POSTPONEMENT? Well, the MalaysiaNow report suggests that it was the Attorney General(who is also the Public Prosecutor) Idrus Harun, and that is great. Is the Public Prosecutor Idrus Harun FREE from outside 'orders/instructions'?
"My instructions (from the attorney-general) was not to object to this application for adjournment. The letter was voluminous and had complex issues to be considered," he said, citing also the length of the letter which he said was 200 pages long.
The 2nd oddity is the fact that '... AGC also received a letter attached to the representation from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), stating it would investigate the new issues raised by Ahmad Zahid's defence. ...' - normally after representation to AGC, then only will the AGC ask the MACC to investigate further if needed. But here, it seems that MACC may have acted on its own.... and Zahid's lawyers can attach this MACC letter in there representation. Strange..but maybe media reports not that accurate.
In this matter, is the fact that Idrus Harun term of office as Attorney General been extended for another year has any 'bearing' with these cases? Following trend of immediate past governments, where a new government will appoint a NEW AG - what Anwar did was interesting >>> extending the term of Idrus Harun(now 67 years old) for a year.
The Malaysian government today announced that Tan Sri Idrus Harun has been reappointed as the attorney general (AG), and that he would be serving one year under the latest appointment....Today’s announcement came after Idrus’s two-year term as attorney general was to officially end on Sunday (March 6).
Recall that former attorney-general Mohamed Apandi Ali, in then Najib's government, came out publicly saying that Najib Razak did not commit any crime in connection with 1MDB- only to be proven wrong later when the Federal Court affirmed Najib's conviction. It was the new Attorney General/Public Prosecutor Tommy Thomas that subsequently charged Najib in court.
The question that arose then, and is still relevant today is HOW Independent are the Attorney General(also Public Prosecutor) from the current government? the current Prime Minister?
Do the government(or Prime Minister) decide who will be charged in court and who will not be? Which cases will the prosecution DISCONTINUE mid-stream, and 'support' an application for an acquittal? Which decisions will the prosecution APPEAL and which will they discontinue the appeal?
Many believe that the PUBLIC PROSECUTOR must always act independently, and seen to be acting independently - especially free from the influence or 'instructions' of the current PM or government.
Zahid is the Deputy Prime Minister - the leader of UMNO/BN, which Anwar and his Pakatan Harapan coalition NEEDED to form and maybe sustain this 'Unity Government'....and many wonder all cases against UMNO/BN and even PH leaders(or friends) may be slowly dropped one way or another...
BUT in this Akalbudi case, the High Court has already decided that the prosecution had proved its case - and Zahid Hamidi was called to enter his Defence. So, here Zahid Hamidi has the difficult task of proving his innocence... and if he FAILS to raise reasonable doubt, the High Court will convict and sentence him...
Now, Zahid Hamidi can present all these 'new evidence' and arguments in court and the Court will decide whether he is guilty, whereby he will be convicted and sentenced.Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah ruled on Monday (Jan 24) that the prosecution had proven a prima facie case against the Umno president after a maximum evaluation of the evidence."I call upon the accused to enter his defence on all charges," he said in a brief decision.- Star, 24/1/2022
However, by putting in a Representation to the Public Prosecutor asking that the case be discontinued means taking away the decision making from the Judge and the Court > now, it is up to the Public Prosecutor ALONE to decide whether to discontinue prosecution at this stage..... or not.
If the Public Prosecutor(Attorney General) decide to discontinue prosecution - then Zahid's lawyer will most likely apply to the Judge to grant an ACQUITTAL. Normally, a discontinuance leads to a DNAA - Discharge Not Amounting To An Acquittal >> which means at any time later, the prosecution can recommence prosecution. The JUDGE also have the power to give an ACQUITTAL - so, it will be up to the Judge. An acquittal means Zahid Hamidi will never be able to be charged and tried for the same or similar offences in the future EVEN if new and additional evidence of guilt is discovered.
'Security of Tenure' is a safeguard to ensure independence - but this is absent when his appointment is by fixed-term contracts, noting that our AG has passed the retirement age of 65(or is it 60 for the AG or Public Prosecutor).
In this Zahid Hamidi cases, the fact that MACC seems to have started investigation, possibly even before the Public Prosecutor asked them to brings us to another fact - the extension of contract of the MACC chief...
Tan Sri Azam Baki (picture) has been reappointed as Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner for a period of one year, with effect from May 12, said Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali. -Malaysian Reserve, 10/5/2023
Remember that Azam Baki scandal - the questions, amongst others, was whether Azam Baki committed a misconduct as Public Officer when he had more than RM100,000 shares? Other than that was the issue of workings of the 5 check and balance committees/etc - the failure of one of these 'Task Force' meeting despite a member, Terence Gomez, raising the matter with the Chair - all in all, the whole matter remains undealt with - and Anwar Ibrahim to date failed to address it. Most expected that PM Anwar and the PH-led government would have appointed a NEW MACC Chief, and not retain Azam Baki...
Has this anything to do with the Zahid Hamidi's 're-investigation' or investigation of new matters... Frankly it matters not, as the HIGH COURT already did a maximum evaluation of evidence already presented by prosecution and decided 'the prosecution had proven a prima facie case against the Umno president after a maximum evaluation of the evidence.'
With regard the Zahid Hamidi's case, there are 2 representations
## Representation to have his graft charges
dropped in this 'Akalbudi' case
## Representation to withdraw the appeal in the foreign visa system (VLN) case, where the prosecution has appealed to the Court of Appeal
Tan Sri Idrus Harun, our current Public Prosecutor, is thus in the LIMELIGHT - will he act independently and professionally which will improve PUBLIC PERCEPTION of the Public Prosecutor and Prosecution in Malaysia> OR will he end up being perceived as 'listening to his political masters' - hence not an independent public prosecutor.
Malaysian Judiciary, the Public Prosecutor and also Law Enforcement Must Always Be Seen To Be Independent - They must act even against the Prime Minister if he/she breaks the law...that is what Malaysia expects.
We are watching ...
Zahid seeks to have YAB charges dropped, trial postponed to Aug 1
By NURBAITI HAMDAN Nation
Monday, 10 Apr 2023 11:50 AM MYT
KUALA LUMPUR: Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has sent a representation to the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) to have his graft charges in the trial involving misappropriation of funds from Yayasan Akalbudi (YAB) dropped, the High Court was told.
His lawyer Hamidi Mohd Noh told this to Court of Appeal judge Justice Collin Lawrence Sequerah, who is presiding at the High Court, citing "new facts and evidence" in the case.
Hamidi sought for the trial, which was to resume on Monday (April 10), to be postponed because of the latest development and to wait for the decision on the representation.
According to Hamidi, the representation letter which contained more than 200 pages was addressed to Attorney General Tan Sri Idrus Harun himself and the prosecution would need to study it.
The prosecution did not object to the postponement, he said.
Deputy public prosecutor Abdul Malik Ayob confirmed that the prosecution had received the lengthy representation letter, which he said contained "complex issues".
He also confirmed that the prosecution was instructed not to object to a postponement.
The judge then asked the DPP about the time needed to study and decide on the representation.
Abdul Malik replied that the AGC also received a letter attached to the representation from the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), stating it would investigate the new issues raised by Ahmad Zahid's defence.
He said the prosecution had not received any information on the investigation but needed its outcome to decide on the representation.
"We do not know whether the investigation has begun or otherwise, (but) to complete the entire process, we would require the result of the investigation," Abdul Malik said.
Justice Sequerah then allowed the postponement.
He fixed Aug 1 for parties to inform the court on the result of the representation.
Ahmad Zahid is facing 47 charges, involving 12 for criminal breach of trust (CBT), eight for corruption and 27 for money laundering, involving tens of millions of ringgit belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi, a charitable foundation he established.
Prosecution says instructed not to object as Zahid's case adjourned for 'further probe'
The deputy public prosecutor says reasonable time is needed to consider the application due to the length of the latest representation by the Umno president.
The prosecution in Ahmad Zahid Hamidi's corruption case on Yayasan Akalbudi funds today said it had been instructed by the attorney-general not to object to an application for an adjournment of trial pending a decision on a letter of representation for a reconsideration of the charges against him.
Zahid's lawyer Hamidi Mohd Noh earlier told the court that the Umno president had sent a letter of representation to the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) for the 47 charges of criminal breach of trust, corruption and money laundering against him to be dropped.
"We wrote a letter of representation in January, and we sent a continuation and a new representation with some new facts and evidence relating to the charges to the AGC in February," he said.
He also asked High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah to adjourn today's proceedings pending a decision by Attorney-General Idrus Harun on the representation.
Deputy public prosecutor Abdul Malik Ayob then told the judge that he had received instructions from the attorney-general not to object to the application.
"My instructions (from the attorney-general) was not to object to this application for adjournment. The letter was voluminous and had complex issues to be considered," he said, citing also the length of the letter which he said was 200 pages long.
"After going through the representation which is lengthy and contained complex issues, we were instructed not to object to the application (for an adjournment of hearing) because the prosecution needs reasonable time to consider (the representation)," he added.
He said the letter also stated that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) was conducting further investigations on the new evidence presented by the defence.
"We have not received any information regarding MACC's investigation, but the prosecution needs the results of the investigation to decide on the representation application.
"We do not know whether MACC has started the investigation or not, therefore to complete the whole process, we need the results of the investigation," he said.
Sequerah then allowed the case to be adjourned until Aug 1.
Zahid, who is also rural and regional development minister, faces 12 counts of criminal breach of trust, eight of corruption and 27 of money laundering involving tens of millions of ringgit belonging to Yayasan Akalbudi.
Last month, he succeeded in his bid for the permanent return of his passport, for the purpose of carrying out his official duties abroad.
The passport was previously surrendered to the court as an additional bail condition.
The Court of Appeal allowed his application, overturning the previous High Court decision by Sequerah dismissing his bid. - MalaysiaNow, 10/4/2023
Idrus Harun reappointed as AG, to serve one more year
KUALA LUMPUR, March 8 — The Malaysian government today announced that Tan Sri Idrus Harun has been reappointed as the attorney general (AG), and that he would be serving one year under the latest appointment.
Chief Secretary to the Government Tan Sri Mohd Zuki Ali made the announcement today.
“It is notified that in line with Article 145(1) of the Federal Constitution, Seri Paduka Baginda Yang di-Pertuan Agong has assented to the reappointment of Y Bhg. Tan Sri Idrus bin Harun as attorney general for a period of one (1) year with effect from March 6, 2022,” Mohd Zuki said in a brief one-paragraph statement today.
Under Article 145(1), the Yang di-Pertuan Agong shall, on the advice of the prime minister, appoint a person — who is qualified to be a Federal Court judge — to be the attorney general.
Today’s announcement came after Idrus’s two-year term as attorney general was to officially end on Sunday (March 6).
Idrus, now aged 67, was first appointed on March 6, 2020 to be attorney general for a two-year term. Idrus replaced Tan Sri Tommy Thomas who had resigned from the position in late February 2020.
Immediately before becoming the attorney general in March 2020, Idrus was serving as a Federal Court judge.
Throughout his 42-year career, the Kedah-born Idrus — who is also a law graduate from Universiti Malaya — had served in multiple positions such as in the Attorney General’s Chambers’ (AGC) division which is tasked with drafting laws, being the head of the Federal Territory Prosecution Unit, and being a deputy public prosecutor with the AGC.
Idrus had also in the past served as senior federal counsel to both the Election Commission and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) predecessor Anti-Corruption Agency, and also as the solicitor general — the second-highest ranked AGC official after the attorney general — from 2006 to 2014.
He then served as a Court of Appeal judge for about four years, and as Federal Court judge from November 2018 until his March 2020 appointment as attorney general.
Idrus is also the older brother of Dewan Rakyat Speaker Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun.
Previously, on March 6, which was when Idrus’s term would have ended, news portal Free Malaysia Today (FMT) had reported Malaysian Bar president AG Kalidas as questioning the seeming delay in making an announcement over whether there has been an extension of Idrus’s term as attorney general.
“It would be prudent if the prime minister does not wait until the
eleventh hour to advise the Yang di-Pertuan Agong and announce the
appointment in the event of vacancy or the extension of the current
appointment,” Kalidas was quoted as telling FMT. - Malay Mail, 8/3/2023
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