Case mention to withdraw appeal against Rafizi tomorrow instead of next March

The Court of Appeal has fixed tomorrow for the case mention to withdraw the appeal against PKR vice-president Rafizi Ramli's acquittal under the Banking and Financial Institutions Act (Bafia).

This was mentioned in a letter dated Dec 10 from the court's deputy registrar to Rafizi, which was sighted by Malaysiakini.

Previously, the case mention was scheduled to take place on March 9, 2020.

Last week, attorney-general Tommy Thomas said he was unaware of the move to file an appeal and labelled it as an act of disobedience on the part of his officers.

Speaking to Malaysiakini, he said the appeal would be withdrawn and action would be taken against the errant officers in the Attorney-General's Chambers.

Last year, the Shah Alam Sessions Court found Rafizi and bank clerk Johari Mohamad guilty of disclosing documents comprising banking details related to National Feedlot Corporation Sdn Bhd (NFC), National Meat & Livestock Sdn Bhd, Agroscience Industries Sdn Bhd and NFC chairperson Mohd Salleh Ismail to the media.

However, the Shah Alam High Court last month overturned the decision, saying the prosecution failed to produce original documents as required by Section 61 of the Evidence Act.

When news of the appeal surfaced, Rafizi criticised Thomas for not upholding the reforms he was entrusted with.

“I hope he is as diligent to bring to justice the ex-minister's family members who benefited from the RM250 million. None of them have been charged in court so far,” he had said.

The NFC chairperson is the husband of former minister Shahrizat Abdul Jalil.

Following Thomas' pledge to revoke the appeal, opposition leader Ismail Sabri accused the AG of succumbing to Rafizi's threat.

"This latest case clearly shows the failure of the Pakatan Harapan government. The rule of law is dead in Malaysia.

"This is the New Malaysia. The sovereignty of the law is dead!" he said.

The AG's predecessor Apandi Ali questioned if Thomas was unfamiliar with Attorney-General's Office's procedure, saying that the process to challenge the appeal was almost automatic since the time Abu Talib Othman was attorney-general from 1980 to 1993. - Mkini