PETALING JAYA: Attorney-General (AG) Ahmad Terrirudin Salleh and his predecessor, Idrus Harun, will appear before a parliamentary select committee looking into the separation of the public prosecutor’s role from that of the AG.
The chairman for the special select committee on human rights, election and institutional reform, William Leong, said they will also summon law and institutional reform minister Azalina Othman Said and the Prime Minister’s Department’s legal affairs division director-general, Khairul Dzaimee Daud.
In a statement, Leong said the individuals will be called in view of allegations that the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) had meddled in several high-profile cases, including the conditional discharge granted to deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in his corruption case.
The other cases mentioned were the High Court’s decision to acquit former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin of abuse of power charges, and the appellate court’s decision this morning to strike out two notices of appeal in the acquittal of former prime minister Najib Razak and former 1MDB CEO Arul Kanda Kandasamy in the 1MDB audit report case.
“The committee is of the view that these cases have created a negative perception that the AGC and other parties had interfered in these cases.
“Justice must not only be done, but also must be seen to be done,” he said.
Last week, Zahid was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) on all 47 of his corruption, criminal breach of trust and money laundering charges.
He had been accused of embezzling millions of ringgit from his foundation, Yayasan Akalbudi, and accepting bribes for various projects during his tenure as the home minister between 2013 and 2018.
The decision, however, drew brickbats, with several quarters, including the Malaysian Bar, saying Zahid’s case made it “increasingly urgent” for the proposed separation of the AG’s office and that of the public prosecutor’s office to take place by 2024.