We’re back: Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette arriving at the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya. — SAMUEL ONG/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: It’s back to the dock for Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad now that the Court of Appeal has ordered them to enter their defence on three corruption charges.
The couple was freed by the High Court just over a year ago after they sought a revision of an order by the Sessions Court for them to enter their defence against the charges.
Yesterday, the appellate court found that the High Court’s decision to acquit the couple from the charges, involving RM2.8mil linked to a Felcra Bhd investment, was “premature” and had essentially disrupted the trial.
The unanimous judgment was made by a panel consisting of Justices Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim, Mohamed Zaini Mazlan and Noorin Badaruddin.
Justice Mohamed Zaini, who read the decision, said it was established law that accused persons cannot appeal a decision that ordered them to enter their defence as it did not constitute a final resolution of the accused persons’ rights.
“The court’s findings at this stage (prima facie) are not subject to appeal, as they do not constitute a final resolution of the respondents’ rights.
“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,” he said yesterday.
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 said the couple’s application was, in fact, an interlocutory appeal “masquerading” as a revision application as the court’s determination of a prima facie case against the respondents could only be challenged in an appeal after the defence’s case has concluded.
He also noted 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 their defence.
“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 added.
As such, the brevity of the Sessions Court’s ruling was also insufficient for the High Court to revise, Justice Mohamed Zaini said.
“There is insufficient material in a brief or a ruling for the learned High Court judge to revise, assuming that his lordship has the powers to do so,” he said, before allowing the appeal by the prosecution.
“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.
