Bersatu's legal bureau has accused the Anwar Ibrahim administration of double standards in enforcing the law when it involved powerful personalities.
This followed an unemployed man's guilty plea in Kuala Terengganu yesterday over the theft of RM22 from a mosque where he could face up to 10 years in jail.
In a statement today, Bersatu legal bureau deputy chief Sasha Lyna Abdul Latif said the "striking contrast" between this case and the prosecution's decision to discharge Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had brought the justice system disrepute.
"Why the difference in treatment between the ordinary unemployed citizen and the deputy prime minister?
"Article 8 of the Federal Constitution states that all persons are equal before the law, whether it’s a poor man or a billionaire or even a DPM.
"Yet, the public can see that under the administration this sacrosanct principle has been ignored. How will the people have any regard or respect for the law and the justice system in these circumstances?" Sasha questioned.
On Monday, prosecutors applied to discharge Zahid despite the court previously ordering the accused to enter his defence after being satisfied that a prima facie case had been established.
As for the petty theft Sasha was referring to, the matter involved 45-year-old unemployed man Suhaidi Abdul Hamid, who pleaded guilty at the Kuala Terengganu Magistrate’s Court for stealing money from the Pulau Sekati mosque.
Under Section 380 of the Penal Code, Suhaidi can be jailed for up to 10 years. Sentencing has been set for Sept 26.
Warning more appropriate
The practising lawyer said it would have been acceptable and perhaps fair had the attorney-general not charged Suhaidi over the meagre sum.
"He could have been let off with a warning. Yet the AG saw fit to proceed with the RM22 case, but discontinued the case against the DPM involving millions of ringgit.
"This disparity exposes our justice system to public disgust and ridicule, and a total loss of credibility. All this after just nine months of the Anwar administration," she added.
It was appalling that the authorities chose to punish and humiliate a desperate man, Sasha said, as it would have been more appropriate to refer the matter to the Terengganu Zakat Department.
"Where was the compassion in this case? Public confidence in the nation and the law can be a fragile thing. Once shattered, it is difficult to fix again.
"If the Anwar administration continues on this path, we are well on the way to becoming a failed state, with one rule for the powerful and a different one for the poor and dispossessed," she added. - Mkini
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