This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 25, 2019 - December 1, 2019

Last week, the Federal Court ruled that the prime minister and ministers are public officers and can be sued for misfeasance, and the government can be held vicariously liable for any wrongdoing that they commit.

A seven-member bench led by Chief Justice Tan Sri Tengku Maimum Tuan Mat unanimously decided that the prime minster and ministers are not invincible and can be held accountable for abuse of power. “They derive their salary from the public purse and carry out their functions with a public purpose,” the ruling reads.

This decision by the apex court follows an appeal by Damansara MP Tony Pua on the decisions of the Court of Appeal and High Court to strike out his suit. Pua had sued Datuk Seri Najib Razak for misfeasance and receiving money from 1MDB, which were public funds.

In February last year, Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and former Batu Kawan Umno vice-chief Datuk Seri Khairuddin Abu Hassan failed to obtain leave of appeal from the Federal Court over their tort of misfeasance in public office lawsuit against Najib pertaining to breach of fiduciary duty over the management of 1MDB funds. They had sought leave to appeal in their bid to reinstate their suit, which had been struck out by the High Court. Can they now file a review and overturn the Federal Court’s decision?

The ruling is a timely reminder to the new government that ministers are answerable  to the rakyat and they can be held legally accountable for any misconduct.

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