The Kuala Lumpur High Court has appointed Amanah Raya Berhad to manage Pastor Raymond Koh’s court-ordered monetary compensation.
Judge Su Tiang Joo delivered his verdict today, following an agreement between the plaintiffs and defendants for the public trustee to be appointed.
The judge, however, did not make any order as to costs.
Previously, Koh’s wife, Susanna Liew, who is the second plaintiff in a suit filed against the government and 12 others, had applied for the court to appoint a trustee.
She listed three options: her lawyer’s legal firm, Messrs Jerald Gomez, PB Trustee Services Bhd, or Amanah Raya.
PB Trustee is a subsidiary of Public Bank Group, while Amanah Raya is government-owned and operates under the Finance Ministry.
Liew’s lawyer, Jerald Gomez, said Amanah Raya’s appointment would mean that the government’s compensation would be deposited into the trustee’s interest-bearing trust fund until Koh’s whereabouts are identified or disclosed.
“The (yearly) charge is quite low, compared to the other option, and the interest rate is quite high… so we (the plaintiffs and defendants) agreed to this, and we informed the court so.
“There is also a black-and-white (agreement) that guarantees the money would be returned (to the government) if the Court of Appeal overturned the verdict,” he told reporters after today’s proceeding.
Still no payment
Jerald reiterated that the government has yet to pay the court-ordered damages, and there was no application to postpone the damages that have been accumulating daily.
“There is no payment until today. (It is best for the government to pay) as soon as possible, because… (it would show) the government’s authority and sincerity.
“If you’re not complying with the judiciary order, something is wrong with you,” the lawyer added.
The judge, on Nov 5, ordered the government to pay RM10,000 per day to Koh, who is the first plaintiff in the suit, starting the day that he was abducted on Feb 13, 2017, until he is found or his whereabouts are identified.
The amount, counted up to today, would be RM32.2 million.
Su further awarded RM4 million in damages, RM1 million in aggravated damages for the prolonged delay in Koh’s discovery, and another RM1 million for unconstitutional acts taken against the pastor by the defendants.
The judge also ruled that these compensations be paid into a trust fund.
Meanwhile, Liew was granted RM2 million in general and aggravated damages for mental distress, plus RM1 million in exemplary damages.
The order was made after finding that the government and the police were liable for Koh’s disappearance.
Apart from Koh’s case, the same judge also held the government and police liable for the disappearance of activist Amri Che Mat and awarded Amri’s wife, Norhayati Ariffin, RM2 million in general damages, RM1 million in exemplary damages, RM14,457.52 in special damages, and RM250,000 in costs.
The court ordered the authorities to reopen their investigation into these cases and report their progress to the attorney-general (AG) every two months.
The government’s lawyers did not apply for a stay of execution against both court orders on the day of the verdicts. However, AG Dusuki Mokhtar told Malaysiakini on Nov 6 that they are appealing against these decisions as well as filing to postpone the payments.
Abducted in broad daylight
On Nov 10, Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail confirmed that the police will comply with the court order by reopening the investigation into Koh and Amri’s disappearance.
Koh, 62, was abducted in broad daylight along Jalan SS4B/10 in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, while driving to a friend’s house. CCTV footage believed to have captured the incident showed at least 15 men and three black SUVs involved in the operation.
While Amri, an alleged Shia follower and proselytiser, vanished on Nov 24, 2016, in Kangar, Perlis. His wife had testified that on May 12, 2018, an officer from Perlis, attached to the police Special Branch, Shamzaini Daud, told her the division was responsible for the abduction.
In 2019, Suhakam concluded that Koh and Amri were victims of enforced disappearance carried out by Special Branch members from the Bukit Aman police headquarters.
Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi later rejected Suhakam’s findings, denying that he had anything to do with the abductions during his tenure as home minister. - Mkini
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