Mukhriz fails again in bid to cite Najib

PUTRAJAYA: Former Kedah menteri besar Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir failed again in his bid to cite Datuk Seri Najib Razak for contempt over a Facebook posting in an ongoing defamation suit against the prime minister’s aide.

This was following the Court of Appeal’s decision, which dismissed Mukhriz’s appeal to obtain leave to initiate contempt proceedings against Najib for allegedly issuing a statement relating to the suit Mukhriz had filed against Datuk Seri Tengku Sarifuddin Tengku Ahmad.

Court of Appeal judge Datuk Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat, who led a three-man bench in the unanimous judgment, said there was no error in the High Court’s decision to not allow Mukhriz’s ex-parte application for leave as the latter had failed to establish a prima facie case of contempt of court against Najib.

Tengku Maimun said the court also found that the High Court had not erred in hearing the matter as an “opposed ex-parte”, as such application for leave must be made ex-parte as stated under Order 52 Rule 32 of the Rules of Court 2012.

“We are in agreement with the learned High Court judge that the appellant (Mukhriz) has not made out a prima facie case of contempt against the respondent (Najib).

“Therefore, the appeal is dismissed,” she said, ordering RM10,000 in costs.

Judges Datuk Hasnah Mohamed Hashim and Datuk Abdul Rahman Sebli also presided.

On July 27 last year, Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim dismissed Mukhriz’s leave application to institute contempt proceedings against Najib on grounds that the statement posted by the prime minister on Facebook on July 7, last year, had nothing to do with Mukhriz’s defamation trial scheduled for July 13 the same year.

The judge also found that the statement did not put pressure or pose a burden on the court to make its decision on the case.