Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim claimed he could not have sexually assaulted Yusoff Rawther because he was with his daughter Nurul Nuha at the time and date of the alleged incident.
This is according to a supporting affidavit that Anwar filed to the Kuala Lumpur High Court denying that his former aide was present at his residence in Segambut on Oct 2, 2018.
"... My second daughter, Nurul Nuha, was at my residence between 2pm and 6pm.
"She confirmed that she and her children were in my company until the arrival of my guests from Indonesia, namely Romo Nitiyudo and Nella Sandra, and that at no time between 2pm and 4pm did I meet anyone other than her and my grandchildren," he said in the court document filed on March 31.
The Tambun MP also refuted claims that his then private secretary Shukri Saad had asked Yusoff to deliver a speech text to the residence.
According to Anwar, who was an opposition leader then, his security personnel, Norafree Ahmad, also denied that he accompanied Yusoff to Anwar's residence, as alleged in the former aide's civil suit.
The premier claimed that during the day of the alleged incident, he was in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, in the morning and only arrived at the house in Segambut between 1pm and 2pm, before leaving for an event in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, between 5pm and 6pm.
"I state that there is no evidence that the plaintiff was present at the Segambut residence on Oct 2, 2018.
"I further state that the plaintiff did not hand over the speech that I delivered on Oct 2, 2018, at the Mahatma Gandhi Event directly to me. It was handed over to my security personnel," he said.
Anwar's affidavit was filed in support of his application seeking the court to postpone Yusoff's civil suit against him until it determines three issues he raised regarding Yusoff's allegations.
The prime minister is also seeking the court to bar the media from covering the preliminary issues and limit hearings only to persons directly involved in the case.
‘Just another delay tactic’
Yusoff's counsel, Rafique Rashid Ali, told reporters this morning that they will file an objection against Anwar's application.
He claimed this was just another tactic by the prime minister to further delay the main trial in Yusoff's civil suit, which was initially scheduled to begin in June last year.
"The court has set (the trial to begin) in June 2025, but until today, it has been about nine or 10 months, and the trial has yet to start.
"We will also object (against the application to bar media coverage). I stated our objection earlier today in an affidavit that it is very unfair to do this because the court has to be open to all.
"This is not a sexual assault case that involves a child or an underage kid, but this involves individuals who are Malaysians, including a person who holds the highest public office in the country.
"The rakyat must know what happened. So, we will object to the application," he said.
During the press conference at the Kuala Lumpur Courts Complex, Rafique also urged the inspector-general of police to provide an update on the police investigation into Yusoff's report in 2024, claiming that he was framed by two individuals.
This was regarding the man's arrest by police for allegedly trafficking drugs and possessing two imitation firearms. - Mkini
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