THE Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by Muar Member of Parliament Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman and three Muar voters seeking leave to challenge the government’s decision to halt allocations meant for the parliamentary constituency.
A three-judge panel chaired by Datuk Hashim Hamzah ruled unanimously that the judicial review application, filed on 23 April 2024, was submitted well beyond the permitted time frame.
The panel also comprised Datuk Azmi Ariffin and Datuk Hayatul Akmal Abdul Aziz.
Bernama cited Judge Hashim, delivering the decision via video conference, said the appellants had contended that their filing was within time based on a letter dated 29 March 2024 sent to the respondent, which stated that if no response was received within seven days, the appellants would assume their request for a special allocation had been rejected.
However, the court found merit in the respondent’s argument that the application and supporting affidavit did not specify the actual date of the decision being challenged.
The government had maintained that the relevant date was 10 September 2023, when Muda withdrew from the Unity Government, leading to the revocation of access to the myKHAS system that manages the RM2 million development allocation for the Muar parliamentary constituency.
“Following that, the remaining RM500,000 and all projects that had been applied for and approved were also cancelled,” said Judge Hashim.
The court held that Syed Saddiq and the other appellants were aware that the decision had effectively been made as of Muda’s withdrawal date.
“Therefore, we agree with the respondent’s submission that the decision date is 10 September 2023, and the three-month limitation period ended on 10 December 2023. The application filed on 23 April 2024 is therefore clearly out of time,” Judge Hashim said.
He added that since the main issue had been settled, other ancillary matters were no longer relevant.
“Accordingly, the decision of the High Court judge is upheld, and the appellants’ appeal is dismissed. We make no order as to costs as this case involves public interest,” he added.
Lawyer Lim Wei Jiet represented Syed Saddiq and the three voters – Najib Abu Nawar, Mohd Bakirudin Abdullah and Muhamad Fadzly Bisri – while senior federal counsel Nurhafizza Azizan appeared for the prime minister and the Malaysian government.
The appellants had sought to overturn the government’s decision to withhold RM500,000 from a total RM1.7 million allocation intended for welfare, community, and disaster relief programmes in Muar.
They also requested the reinstatement of Syed Saddiq’s access to the myKHAS system and the reversal of the cancellation of approved projects worth RM230,300.
The applicants further argued that the refusal to allocate funds to Syed Saddiq as Muar’s MP violated Article 8 of the Federal Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law. - October 27, 2025
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