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TwitterAnwar’s appeal halted by prosecution’s preliminary objection
The prosecution team today claimed that Anwar’s lawyers could not appeal the High Court’s August 16 decision to strike out his submission because it had not been a final order and wanted the objection taken up by 3.00pm today.
The defence, however, said they had not been notified of the objection and needed time to prepare. After a brief adjournment, Judges Datuk Mohd Raus Sharif, Datuk Sulung Mat Jaraie and Datuk Ashar Ma’ah decided to give Anwar’s legal team until 9.00am on Monday to do so.
“They didn’t give us notice. We didn’t see it coming... Normally, under the law, if you want to raise a preliminary objection, you’ll have to inform us two weeks before by letter,” Anwar’s lawyer Sankara Nair said.
“They’re saying it’s not appealable, so don’t even bother appealing. If appealable then only can, but the distinction’s again [between] the final order and the interlocutory, whether this will not dispose of the issues of the matter.
“It’s [about] finality... If it’s not final order, we cannot appeal,” he added.
“This has a very severe consequence. The entire trial can be thrown away... It’s a serious application, so we need the time to prepare.”
Sankara explained that his team were caught off-guard by the objection given that Solicitor-General II Datuk Yusof Zainal Abiden’s own notes state that the order was not an interlocutory one.
“We believe even the judge has made such a comment. So that’s why we were not prepared for that one. We came straight to the arguments,” he said.
The application was made on August 2 following allegations of an affair between star witness and complainant Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan and deputy public prosecutor (DPP) Farah Azlina Latif.
The High Court rejected his application on August 16 on the grounds that affidavits by DPP Mohd Hanafiah Zakaria and investigating officer Judy Pereira were sufficient enough to prove that Farah was not privy to investigation and trial documents, and that her role was only limited to taking down notes of trial proceedings.
Judge Datuk Mohd Zabidin Mohd Diah also said that since Farah was not responsible in conducting the interrogation of witnesses, there would be no “influence” on the part of Saiful on Farah as a result of the “affair”.
Farah has since been dropped from the prosecution team.
Anwar later filed a notice of appeal against the High Court’s decision that same day.
Fugitive blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin kick-started the affair rumours in a posting on his Malaysia Today website two weeks ago, claiming that Saiful and Farah were involved in a sexual relationship.
Sankara added that he will ask the High Court to move Anwar’s sodomy trial on Monday to Tuesday 9.00am so that it would not clash with the appeal hearing.
“Monday will be the hearing, and the decision might be given the same day,” he said.
“We can’t possibly assume that it won’t be given so we’re applying to the High Court to have the main trial... on Tuesday.”
Anwar, the 63-year-old PKR de facto leader, is charged with sodomising Saiful at Unit 11-5-1 of the Desa Damansara Condominium in Jalan Setiakasih, Bukit Damansara here between 3.01pm and 4.30pm on June 26, 2008.
The former deputy prime minister has denied the charge, describing it as “evil, frivolous lies by those in power” when the charge was read out to him. He is charged under section 377B of the Penal Code and can be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years’ jail and whipping upon conviction.
The trial is taking place 18 months after Anwar was charged in court in August 2008.
Anwar was charged with sodomy and corruption in 1998 after he was sacked from the Cabinet and was later convicted and jailed for both offences.
He was freed in September 2004 and later resurrected his political career by winning back his Permatang Pauh parliamentary seat in a by-election in 2008. The seat had been held in the interim by his wife.
He had earlier led the opposition coalition, Pakatan Rakyat, to a historic sweep of five states and 82 parliamentary seats in Election 2008.
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