KUALA LUMPUR: An anti-corruption group is calling for accountability from the Attorney General's Chambers (AGC) following the dismissal of charges against Datuk Seri Najib Razak and Tan Sri Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah.
The Center to Combat Corruption & Cronyism (C4 Center) expressed concern that, despite the case being brought to trial in October 2018, the prosecution failed to complete its case after six years.
This failure was attributed to the prosecution's inability to provide 200 sets of documents requested by the defence.
C4 also noted that one of the excuses given by the prosecution was that the requested documents were classified under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) 1972 and had not been declassified by the relevant ministries.
"Here, serious questions arise regarding the ability of the AGC to carry out its mandate. Does the AGC not have sufficient stature to ensure inter-agency cooperation for prosecutions?
"If not, is this indicative of a major flaw in the effectiveness of the Malaysian criminal justice system? It cannot be repeated enough that this case alleged the abuse of RM6.6 billion in public funds.
"There is a huge need for clarity as to why the case failed to be brought to trial after six years, considering all the effort and financial resources that must have been expended for this purpose," it said in a statement.
Furthermore, C4 stated that the case involving the former Prime Minister and former Treasury Secretary-General was not the first procedural misstep, citing the discharge not amounting to acquittal (DNAA) granted to Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in the Yayasan Akalbudi case, among others.
The group warned that repeated missteps would erode public trust in the AGC's ability to prosecute complex corruption cases, particularly those involving high-level politicians.
"When criminal cases involving politicians are not brought to completion, especially due to technicalities, public perception grows that political bias is influencing the outcome of such cases," C4 Center said.
Yesterday, Najib and Irwan were acquitted of RM6.6 billion in criminal breach of trust charges related to the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) financial scandal.
High Court judge Datuk Muhammad Jamil Hussin granted the DNAA for the former Prime Minister and the former company chairman after the prosecution failed to provide hundreds of documents related to the trial to the defence team, despite the charges being filed against them in 2018.
The missing documents include records from Cabinet meetings, as well as from the Finance Ministry, the Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability Ministry, and the Transport Ministry.