Kuala Lumpur: Attorney General Datuk Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar has objected to the application by three opposition MPs to appoint lawyers to hold a watching brief in the judicial review filed by former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. He contends that these MPs have no right to argue or raise objections in the case, limiting their role to mere observation.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the judicial review concerns Najib’s claim regarding the existence of an additional document that could allow him to serve the remainder of his six-year prison sentence under house arrest. In an affidavit filed on February 10, Mohd Dusuki argued that the application, made by Opposition Leader Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin, Bersatu Whip Datuk Seri Dr Ronald Kiandee, and PAS Vice President Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Samsuri Mokhtar, lacks merit.
Mohd Dusuki emphasized that lawyers holding a watching brief do not have the right to present arguments or participate in the case beyond observation, asserting that their presence is unnecessary. He stated, “If there are constitutional issues arising during the hearing of this judicial review application, (Najib’s) lawyer has the authority to argue on those issues without the need for the presence or arguments from the applicants in this application.”
Furthermore, Mohd Dusuki pointed out that the three applicants are not parties to the application for a gag order and lack the right to raise objections against it. He noted that “under any circumstances, the applicants in this application are prohibited from discussing issues in the judicial review application in the Dewan Rakyat based on Rule 23(1)(g) and Rule 36(2) of the Standing Orders of the Dewan Rakyat.”
On January 22, the three MPs filed a motion seeking leave to be represented by Tan Sri Azhar Azizan Harun, PAS secretary-general Takiyuddin Hassan, and Zulkifli Nordin to hold a watching brief in Najib’s application for judicial review. Earlier, on January 6, the Court of Appeal, in a majority 2-1 ruling, remitted the case to the High Court for a hearing on its merits after allowing Najib’s appeal against the High Court’s dismissal of his application for leave to initiate a judicial review.
Najib, 71, is seeking a mandamus order to compel the respondents to confirm the existence of the additional document, dated January 29, 2024. He has named multiple respondents, including the Home Minister, the Commissioner General of Prisons, the Attorney General, and others.
The former Pekan MP is also seeking an order to compel the respondents to act on the document, should it exist, to transfer him from Kajang Prison to his residence in Kuala Lumpur to serve the rest of his sentence under house arrest. Najib has been serving his sentence at Kajang Prison since August 23, 2022, following his conviction for embezzling RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd. He filed a petition for a royal pardon on September 2, 2022.
The High Court had initially sentenced Najib to 12 years in prison and imposed a fine of RM210 million, a decision upheld by both the Court of Appeal and the Federal Court. However, the Pardons Board later halved his prison sentence to six years and reduced his fine to RM50 million.