KUALA LUMPUR – Police will not be opening an investigation paper regarding comments made by chief justice Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat’s husband who criticised former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
Cheras district police chief Zam Halim Jamaluddin, in a statement today, said a Facebook post uploaded by Datuk Zamani Ibrahim was “his own personal political view”, and had no criminal elements.
“There had been no offence committed. As such, police have not opened an investigation paper over the complaint,” Zam said, adding that they had received a report lodged regarding the Facebook post on August 18.
The old post, he said, was re-shared by certain irresponsible parties to elicit responses from netizens.
Earlier, Najib’s defence lawyer Hisyam Teh Poh Teik filed an application to recuse Tengku Maimun from hearing the former prime minister’s final appeal against his SRC International Sdn Bhd conviction.
Hisyam said the application, which was also served to the prosecution this morning, was based on Najib’s affidavit for the recusal, in which he had cited a Facebook post by Zamani.
“I verily believe the above-named individual Zamani Ibrahim is the husband to the Honourable Chief Justice Her Ladyship Tun Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat that is the chairman of the judicial panel that is hearing my final appeal of the SRC case in the Federal Court.
“I verily believe that these developments are highly disturbing in light of the fact that the said Zamani Ibrahim clearly has negative sentiments towards my leadership of this country while I was prime minister and had concluded I had siphoned sovereign government funds into my personal accounts.
“Being the husband of the chairman that is adjudicating my appeal, it is likely that he would have influenced the thinking of the mind of the chairman as to my alleged culpability,” said Najib in his affidavit.
Later on, a five-member bench chaired by Tengku Maimun upheld the court decision on Najib’s conviction of all seven charges in the SRC International case and his 12-year prison sentence. – The Vibes, August 23, 2022
