Thursday 28 Mar 2024
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This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 18, 2019 - November 24, 2019

EVEN though former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak will be entering his defence in the SRC International trial next month, it will be a while yet before it is concluded. His lead counsel, Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, hinted last week that the case is expected to drag on beyond the next general election in 2023, given his intention to take it all the way to the apex court.

After the early setback to the defence, Shafee  told media last week that if decisions continue to go against Najib, he would take the case all the way up, a process that will take considerable time and a number of years.

“You’re only looking at preliminary views of a single judge. We will have to hear from a seven-quorum member of the Federal Court.

“So, I’ve always looked forward to a good hearing ultimately in the Federal Court because, as you know, if things do not change, this matter will reach the Federal Court. That is where I am hoping many issues will be properly addressed,” he said following High Court judge Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali’s decision that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against Najib.

In short, both the prosecution and defence will face many stages of record preparation as the case goes from the High Court to the Court of Appeal and ultimately, lands in the Federal Court. To prepare appeals, Shafee quipped that the documentation for both sides would be taller than most people.

Perhaps already anticipating a defeat at the High Court, he said Najib’s defence would go to the Court of Appeal. “That will take three, four weeks of hearing and then the record has got to be reprepared, maybe this time, it will be three times your height [when it is submitted] to the Federal Court.”

At the same time, he expressed confidence in Najib’s upcoming court testimony. “He is giving evidence on oath. That means you can cross-examine him as much as you want. We have got a lot of evidence that we can provide. He will testify what really transpired in the Ministry of Finance and in the Prime Minister’s Office.”

Najib will also be addressing his relationship with fugitive financier Low Taek Jho.  Najib would not run away from the fact that he knew Low, but would dispute the contention that he knew Low had criminal intentions.

As such, Shafee said, one must distinguish whether Najib was too naïve or trusting of Low or whether “he has got a criminal mind like that Jho Low”.

According to Shafee — who intends to call at least two expert witnesses to testify on Najib’s behalf — in order to convict Najib, one must be satisfied that he was of same mind as Low.  

 

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