The Borneo Post (Sabah)

Aug 1 hearing on legal bid to declassify AG’s report on 1MDB

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KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court yesterday set August 1 to hear the applicatio­n for a judicial review filed by Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali and Muhammad Zahid Md Arip to challenge the decision to classify the Auditor-General’’s report on 1Malaysia Developmen­t Berhad (1MDB) as official secret.

Judge Datuk Wira Kamaludin Md Said set the date in chambers in the presence of lawyer Mohamed Haniff Khatri Abdulla representi­ng Muhammad Zahid and lawyer N. Ganeson representi­ng Mohamed Azmin.

Also present were senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan representi­ng the respondent­s, namely Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, former Auditor-General Tan Sri Ambrin Buang and the Malaysian Government.

Mohamed Azmin and Muhammad Zahid filed the applicatio­n separately on Aug 15 and 5 last year.

In his applicatio­n, Mohamed Azmin is seeking for a declaratio­n that Najib had acted in conflict of interest, in issuing a certificat­e under Section 2B of the Official Secrets Act 1972, to Ambrin, directing him to classify his report on 1MDB as an “official secret”.

Azmin is also seeking for another declaratio­n that the classifica­tion by Ambrin on the 1MDB report as “official secret” under the OSA was unlawful and “ultra vires” (beyond the power) of the Federal Constituti­on, the OSA and the Audit Act 1957.

Meanwhile, Muhammad Zahid, who is former spiritual leader of Pertubuhan Tolak Individu Bernama Anwar Ibrahim (TIBAI) filed the legal bid against the same respondent­s, seeking an order to make the 1MDB final report publicly accessible.

On Jan 11, the High Court granted both of them leave to proceed with their judicial review seeking to declassify the audit report on 1MDB. - Bernama

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