AFTER a bizarre change of events that saw popular lawyer Tan Sri Dr Muhammad Shafee Abdullah being benched, the new defence team in former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s SRC International appeal at the Federal Court has made headlines once more.
This after Najib’s new lawyers from Messrs Zaid Ibrahim Suffian TH Liew & Partners said they will discharge themselves from acting for the Pekan MP if their new appeal to postpone the hearing in court next week fails.
According to news portal Malaysiakini, this was conveyed to the Federal Court during case management yesterday afternoon (Aug 10).
The case management, held over Zoom, discussed Najib’s bid to include fresh evidence and nullify his seven charges of power abuse, criminal breach of trust and money laundering in relation to RM42 mil from SRC International.
The Federal Court is set to hear the fresh evidence bid next Monday (Aug 15), followed by his main SRC appeal.
During yesterday’s case management, the court informed the legal teams for the prosecution and Najib that if it dismisses the fresh evidence bid, it would immediately proceed to hear the main SRC appeal.
“We are not ready”
However, at this juncture, Zaid Ibrahim Suflan TH Liew & Partners indicated to the court that they are “not ready” to proceed with the main appeal as it involved major issues and required more time for preparation, Malaysiakini reported.
The lawyers also informed the court that if it decides to proceed with the main appeal all the same, then they would have no choice but to discharge themselves from acting for Najib.
The hearing for the main SRC appeal is slated for Aug 15 to 19, followed by Aug 23 to 26, 2022.
Najib was represented by lawyers Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, Liew Teck Huat and Rueben Mathiavaranam, while the prosecution was represented by deputy public prosecutor Datuk V. Sithambaram.
On July 26, it was reported that Najib had appointed former law minister Datuk Mohd Zaid Ibrahim to lead his new defence team. The move was seen as an interesting development since Messrs Shafee & Co has been representing Najib in court for many years now.
On July 29, the apex court rejected a bid by Najib’s new legal team to postpone the appeal hearing.
Last December, the Court of Appeal dismissed Najib’s appeal to overturn the SRC International case guilty ruling by then Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Datuk Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali.
The appellate court also ruled that his conviction, alongside the 12-year jail sentence and RM210 mil fine over the seven charges, should be upheld. Najib is out on bail pending his Federal Court hearing.
The Court of Appeal had also infamously branded Najib’s conduct in the misappropriation of funds from SRC International – a former subsidiary company of 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) – as a “national embarrassment”. – Aug 11, 2022
Main photo credit: DPA
