PUTRAJAYA, May 6 — The four abuse of power charges in connection with the Jana Wibawa project preferred against former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin are clear and not ambiguous, the Court of Appeal said in its written rationale released last week.
Justice Datuk Hadhariah Syed Ismail said the charges had listed all the necessary ingredients to establish an offence under Section 23(1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) 2009.
“In our opinion, the particulars contained in each of the four charges were sufficient to give Muhyiddin notice of the matter with which he was charged,” she said in the 32-page document dated to April 16 and posted on the judiciary’s website.
Justice Hadhariah said Muhyiddin was not misled in any manner whatsoever merely due to the lack of particulars and deemed it unnecessary for the prosecution to provide further particulars regarding the commission of the offence.
On February 28, the three-member Court of Appeal bench led by Justice Hadhariah, alongside Datuk Azmi Ariffin and Datuk S.M. Komathy Suppiah, allowed the prosecution’s appeal and reinstated the charges that the High Court had previously struck out.
Justice Hadhariah said the High Court judge had erred when he held that the charges were not clear and Muhyiddin was misled.
All four ingredients for an offence under Section 23 (1) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Act were stated in the charges.
She added that Muhyiddin was charged in his capacity as prime minister and president of Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia, therefore satisfying the first ingredient of the offence that he is a “public officer”.
The charges also articulated the second element of the offence, alleging that Muhyiddin had used his position.
As for the third and fourth ingredients of the offence, Justice Hadhariah said the charges preferred against Muhyiddin had included the word gratification and that the gratification was for his associate, namely Bersatu.
Muhyiddin, then 76 years old and serving as prime minister and Bersatu president, faces charges of leveraging his position to solicit RM232.5 million in bribes from three companies — Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd, Nepturis Sdn Bhd, and Mamfor Sdn Bhd — as well as from Datuk Azman Yusoff on behalf of the party.
He is accused of allegedly committing the offence at the Prime Minister’s Office, Bangunan Perdana Putra, Federal Government Administration Centre in Putrajaya, between March 1, 2020 and August 20, 2021.
Muhyiddin also faces two charges of receiving RM195 million in illegal proceeds from Bukhary Equity Sdn Bhd, deposited into Bersatu’s CIMB bank account.
He allegedly committed the act at CIMB Menara KL Branch, Jalan Stesen Sentral, between February 25 and July 16, 2021, and between February 8 and July 8, 2022.
Muhyiddin’s application to obtain leave to commence a judicial review of the February 28 Court of Appeal’s decision to reinstate the charges against him will be heard by a five-member panel of the Court of Appeal on July 9.
— Bernama
