KUALA LUMPUR: The Court of Appeal has ordered Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife, Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad, to enter their defence on three corruption charges involving RM2.8mil related to a Felcra Bhd investment.
A three-judge panel, led by Justice Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim, found that the High Court's decision to discharge and acquit Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette was "premature" and disrupted the trial.
The other judges on the panel were Justices Mohamed Zaini Mazlan and Noorin Badaruddin.
Justice Mohamed Zaini, who delivered the unanimous decision, stated that it is established law that accused persons cannot appeal a decision that calls them to enter defence.
He explained that the court's findings at the prima facie stage are not subject to appeal, as they do not represent a final resolution of the respondents' rights.
He noted that requesting a revision of these findings is essentially the same as filing an appeal against them.
The due process of the trial must continue, allowing the respondents to present their defence, Justice Mohamed Zaini said on Monday (Nov 18).
The Kinabatangan MP and his wife were acquitted and discharged on Sept 7, 2023, after the High Court allowed their revision applications to overturn a Sessions Court ruling on Sept 2, 2022, that had ordered them to enter their defence on the corruption charges.
The prosecution filed its appeal against the acquittal on Sept 18, 2023.
Justice Mohamed Zaini stated that the respondents' application was, in fact, an interlocutory appeal "masquerading" as a revision application, as the determination of a prima facie case against the respondents could only be challenged in an appeal after the defence trial has concluded.
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He also pointed out that the trial judge had given a brief oral ruling that did not contain comprehensive reasoning in calling Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette to enter defence.
He said that the oral ruling was not a judgment that contained the grounds for her decision.
The learned Sessions Court judge, in fact, has no obligation to give any reasons at this stage in calling for defence; that obligation only arises at the end of the trial, whether she chooses to acquit or convict the respondents, he said.
As such, the brevity of the Sessions Court's ruling was also insufficient for the High Court to revise, Justice Mohamed Zaini said.
He added that there was insufficient material in a brief or ruling for the learned High Court judge to revise, assuming that his lordship has the powers to do so.
He further stated that a trial would be disrupted when an application for revision on a prima facie ruling was allowed, creating an insufferable situation where the trial court must accede to numerous requests for postponements to enable each party to appeal against an order made during the trial.
This will frustrate the progress of trials, wasting precious judicial time and public expense and must be stopped, he said.
We allow the appeal by the appellant. The High Court's ruling is therefore set aside.
The Sessions Court ruling is restored, and we order this case to be remitted back to the Sessions Court for the trial to continue without further delay, Justice Mohamed Zaini said.
The appellate court then fixed Dec 5 for case management at the Sessions Court.
Bung Moktar, who was then the non-executive chairman of Felcra, was charged on May 3, 2019, with two counts of accepting bribes of RM2.2mil and RM262,500 as an inducement to obtain Felcra approval to invest RM150mil in Public Mutual unit trusts.
He was alleged to have accepted the bribes from Public Mutual Bhd’s investment agent Madhi Abdul Hamid through Zizie Izette at Public Bank's Taman Melawati branch between 12.30pm and 5pm on June 12, 2015.
Zizie Izette was charged with three counts of abetting her husband over the matter at the same place, date, and time.
