Published: Monday November 19, 2012 MYT 7:54:00 PM

NFC: Rafizi should have used whistleblower laws instead of going public, court hears

By NURBAITI HAMDAN

SHAH ALAM: PKR director of strategy Rafizi Ramli should have lodged a report under the Whistleblower Protection Act 2010 instead of going public with his claims about the National Feedlot Corporation (NFC) scandal, the High Court heard.

DPP Nahra Dollah said the complainant in the case Datuk Seri Mohamad Salleh Ismail, who is NFC director, must have his interest as a bank customer protected despite being accused as a 'fraudster'.

The prosecution was submitting in a hearing of a bid to quash a charge against Rafizi who allegedly revealed confidential banking details linked to the NFC issue.

Rafizi, 35, was charged under the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989 (Bafia) on secrecy.

DPP Nahra said the court has jurisdiction over the matter but there was no miscarriage of justice for it to allow a stay of proceedings at the Sessions Court where Rafizi was charged.

"The prosecution will prove a prima case against Rafizi (at the Sessions Court), hence the higher court should not stay the proceedings. I ask for this application to be dismissed," she said Mopnday.

Earlier, Rafizi's lawyer R. Sivarasa described the charge against Rafizi as "against public policy" and said Mohamad Salleh was in no position to make a complaint related to his own alleged wrongdoing.

"The complainant was not the police, or the bank, or Bank Negara, but by a person (Mohamad Salleh) who has been accused of fraud.

He is the one complaining about his bank information being exposed.

"How else would fraud, criminal breach of trust and tax evasion be exposed if not through banking information? The applicant (Rafizi) wasn't making frivolous, unsubstantiated claims," he said.

Justice Ghazali Cha fixed this Friday for a decision.

On Aug 1, Rafizi was charged with having access to four customer profile documents pertaining to the balance summary of the National Feedlot Corporation Sdn Bhd, the National Meat and Livestock Sdn Bhd, the Agroscience Industries Sdn Bhd and Mohamad Salleh, husband of former cabinet minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Jalil.

Rafizi allegedly exposed the said documents to media consultant Yusuf Abdul Alim and journalist Erle Martin Carvalho at the PKR headquarters in Merchant Square, Jalan Tropicana Selatan 1 on March 7, an offence under Section 97(1) of the Act.

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