Failed bid to declassify AG's 1MDB report

KUALA LUMPUR: Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali and a former spiritual leader for an anti-Anwar Ibrahim organisation failed to challenge the government's decision to classify the Auditor-General's Report on 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) as official secret.

High Court judge Datuk Wira Kamaludin Md Said held that there was no merit in the judicial review applications filed by Mohamed Azmin and Muhammad Zahid Md Arip who is the former spiritual leader of Pertubuhan Tolak Individu Bernama Anwar Ibrahim (TIBAI).

The judge also held that both applicants had no locus standi to bring the legal action.

Mohamed Azmin had named Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, former auditor-general Tan Sri Ambrin Buang and the Malaysian government as respondents.

In his application he contended 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 official secret.

He further contended that the classification by Ambrin of the 1MDB Report as "official secret" was unlawful and ultra vires the Federal Constitution, the OSA and the Audit Act 1957.

Muhammad Zahid filed a separate legal bid against the same respondents, seeking an order to make the 1MDB final report publicly accessible.

Kamaludin in his judgment said: "The reasons advanced by the applicant to show that he has locus standi to bring this action or is adversely affected is profoundly frivolous. The applicant is totally a stranger to the decision by the Auditor General and is a mere busybody.

"I fail to see the relevance of the Auditor General's final report of 1MDB and the decision of the Auditor General to classify the said report as official secret to the applicant or has directly affected and/or infringed his right," the judge asserted.

He also noted that there were serious allegations against the prime minister in respect of the financial impropriety of 1MDB which also included the allegation by the applicant that 'Malaysia Official 1' was the first respondent who received a sum of RM2.08 billion into his personal bank account. The money purportedly came from 1MDB. He said there was no evidence or proof against Najib in respect of the financial impropriety of 1MDB, “the allegation were not true and if they were not true, there was no reason for the applicant to correct what he had written and published in the book and to see whether what he has written was true and maintainable”.

Kamaludin also said the term “official secret” was defined in Section 2 of the Act 88 of the OSA as “any document specified in the schedule and any information and material relating thereto and include any other official document, information and material as may be classified as 'Top Secret', 'Secret',' Confidential' or 'Restricted', as the case may be by the minister, menteri besar or chief minister of a state or such public officer appointed under Section 2B of the OSA.

He said official secret documents could only be disclosed if they had been declassified under Section 2C of Act 88, by a minister or public officer charged with any responsibility in respect of any ministry, department or any public service.