[UPDATED] AG has powers to grant discharge under Article 145, says PM

KUALA LUMPUR – Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today said the attorney-general has the power to grant a discharge to any individual under Article 145 of the Federal Constitution.

He said the AG and the judiciary had full authority to grant Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) over his 47 corruption charges related to Yayasan Akal Budi.

Addressing the Dewan Rakyat today, Anwar also stressed that he did not have any discussion with the AG over the DNAA granted to the deputy prime minister.

“I only asked the AG to clarify why the DNAA was granted and he provided 11 reasons for the decision.

“There were no discussions at all before the DNAA was granted.”

He said accusations that he influenced the decision were baseless and demanded critics prove their accusations. 

Anwar strongly denied interfering in the decision and that the AG had said he wanted to handle this issue before he retired. 

Since the conditional discharge, various quarters, including government and opposition MPs, have alleged government interference in Zahid’s case.

“I feel compelled to address the matter following these allegations and also claims that I had discussed the case with the AG,” he said.

Current AG Datuk Ahmad Terrirudin Mohd Salleh had earlier announced that the charges against Zahid were dropped in line with Article 145(3) of the Federal Constitution.

Article 145(3) provides the A-G with the discretion to conduct or discontinue any proceedings for an offence.

Anwar also cited several precedents including the case involving Karpal Singh in 1991, where the courts decided that the AG's discretionary powers cannot be questioned. – The Vibes, September 19, 2023