The former prime minister, in an affidavit sworn by his counsel Farhan Shafee, argued that the Malaysian Bar lacked locus standi to initiate the legal action.
He claimed that the Bar’s 78th AGM, which passed a motion to file the action, was void as it was purportedly conducted without the necessary quorum and thus violated the Legal Profession (LPA) Act 1976, rendering it ultra vires and a breach of statutory duty.
Farhan, in the affidavit filed on Aug 6, said the numerous motions proposed during the AGM included one regarding the Pardons Board, which sought to obtain Bar members’ approval to file a judicial review application against the board’s decision on Najib’s sentence.
“Pursuant to Section 64(4) of the LPA Act, the quorum to commence the AGM requires 500 members of the Bar to be in attendance. However, I verily believe that at 10am on March 16, the requisite quorum of members had not been achieved.
“The AGM commenced at 12.15pm on March 16 with only 401 members in attendance (approximately 1.6% of the total members of the Bar), below the requisite quorum required.
“The motion to file this present judicial review challenge was allegedly deliberated and passed resulting in the present challenge.
said Farhan.I believe that the 78th AGM of the Malaysian Bar is null and void in law, rendering the decision to file this suit ultra vires. It ought to be struck out,
The lawyer also said the Bar lacked locus standi to commence the action as it did not have any legal or equitable interest in the matter of Najib’s pardon.
The Bar filed the judicial review leave application on April 26, naming the Pardons Board of the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, and Putrajaya, along with Najib, as respondents.
It is seeking a declaration that the Jan 29 decision regarding Najib’s application to halve his prison sentence, which would result in an early release on Aug 23, 2028, is illegal, unconstitutional and invalid.
It is also seeking a declaration that the Pardons Board’s decision to reduce Najib’s fine from RM210 million to RM50 million, with the condition that failure to settle it would extend his prison term by a year, is illegal, unconstitutional and invalid.
Najib, 70, has been serving his sentence in Kajang Prison since Aug 23, 2022, after being convicted of misappropriating RM42 million from SRC International Sdn Bhd.
He filed a petition for a royal pardon on Sept 2, 2022, resulting in the Pardons Board halving his prison sentence from 12 years to six years, and reducing the fine from RM210 million to RM50 million. -FMT
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