KUALA LUMPUR: Datuk Seri Azalina Othman Said has done no wrong by responding to queries made by Datuk Seri Najib Razak's lawyer, says former MP Tan Sri Shahrir Abdul Samad.
This comes after Azalina responded to queries on the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) probe into Justice Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali’s case.
Mohd Nazlan was the High Court trial judge who had convicted and sentenced the former prime minister to 12 years’ jail and a RM210mil fine on seven charges relating to RM42mil in funds belonging to SRC International Sdn Bhd on July 28, 2020.
In the letter dated March 20 this year, Azalina confirmed that MACC in their investigation against Mohd Nazlan concluded that the latter had violated the Judges Code of Ethics when presiding over Najib's corruption charges involving the SRC International case.
Shahrir in a statement on Saturday (April 8) said Azalina's reply to Najib’s lawyers was merely to confirm what she said in the Dewan Rakyat.
"As the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), should she not have replied to a duly registered law firm or ignored the letter.
"Her answer in Parliament pre-dates the Federal Court ruling on Feb 24, 2023, that the MACC and the Attorney General must follow protocols to seek permission from the Chief Justice before investigating or charging a sitting judge.
"Considering that it is pre-dated, how could Azalina be in contempt of a ruling that had not been decided," he added.
Shahrir was responding to statements made by former Malaysian Bar presidents and Selayang MP William Leong who criticised Azalina for revealing the contents of an MACC investigation.
"Leong's accusation of Azalina committing contempt has no merit. An MP openly throwing false allegations against his own government's minister will question the stability of the current government.
"Many people feel uncomfortable with these new protocols as it means that judges are now seen to be above the law.
"In fact, the Federal Court ruling read by the Chief Justice also stated that permission must be obtained from the Chief Justice if MACC and the AG wanted to investigate or charge the Chief Justice.
"The problem is that these protocols never existed before.
"Similarly, MACC would not have been in contempt as they completed their investigations and sent their recommendations and their report to the Chief Justice on Feb 20, 2023, again pre-dating the Federal Court’s judgment," he said.
Shahrir said those who are attacking Azalina and the MACC over the judge’s investigation should focus on the findings of the investigation.
Leong in a statement recently said Azalina's letter was written on March 20, 2023, after the Federal Court delivered its judgment on Feb 24, 2023, that the MACC investigation of Mohd Nazlan was unconstitutional, illegal and undermines the independence of the judiciary.
"The minister’s (Azalina) letter amounts to contempt of court. It totally disregards, and is disrespectful of the Federal Court’s judgment.
"It is a challenge to the Federal Court’s judgment by seeking to revive the MACC report after the Federal Court has already said that the MACC investigation was not genuine, not made in good faith and was carried out for a collateral purpose to assist Najib in his SRC appeal," Leong said.
In a statement on Friday (April 7), former Malaysian Bar presidents hit out at the MACC for acting outside its scope of investigatory powers, for revealing contents of an MACC investigation and Attorney-General Tan Sri Idrus Harun for keeping quiet about the attacks against the judiciary.
The group questioned Azalina's recent letter to Najib's lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.
"It is unusual that a minister has seen fit to respond and provide information to a litigant in respect of MACC's letter to the Chief Justice. This reeks of interference," added the statement.
