High Court to decide tomorrow on PM's ‘immunity' referral

Free Malaysia Today

4 days ago

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim claims Yusoff Rawther's lawsuit against him is 'tainted, politically driven, and an abuse of process'.
KUALA LUMPUR : The High Court here will decide tomorrow whether to refer eight legal questions raised by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to the Federal Court, including whether he has immunity from a civil suit filed by a former research assistant.
At today's hearing, the prime minister's lawyers told Justice Roz Mawar Rozain that the questions posed met the threshold for referral to the apex court.
Lawyer Alan Wong, representing Anwar, argued that Yusoff Rawther's lawsuit would hinder the prime minister's ability to carry out his official duties effectively.
'The suit is tainted, politically driven, and an abuse of process,' he said, adding that the questions must be answered by the country's top court before the trial is allowed to begin.
Wong said judges of superior courts enjoy immunity when carrying out their official functions. He argued that a similar safeguard should be extended to the prime minister.
'The Federal Constitution is not explicit about this matter,' said the lawyer, adding that this was why an authoritative determination of the eight questions was necessary.
Wong said Anwar would suffer irreversible damage if the trial proceeds and Yusoff's allegations are found to be spurious.
'We are not asking for absolute immunity but for the court to provide the prime minister constitutional safety,' he said.
The prime minister wants the apex court to rule whether Articles 39, 40 and 43 of the Federal Constitution grant him qualified immunity from a suit filed by Yusoff four years ago.
The suit relates to events which allegedly took place before Anwar took office on Nov 24, 2022.
In the application, filed by recently appointed solicitors, Messrs Zain Megat & Murad, Anwar said the apex court must decide whether the suit would impair the effective discharge of his executive duties and undermine the constitutional separation of powers.
Lawyer DS Rajasegaran, who appeared with Wong, submitted that the proper course would be for the court to conduct a threshold inquiry before deciding whether the suit should be heard.
'The prime minister must be accorded functional immunity duty under the constitution and should not be allowed to face any type of suit,' he said, adding that Anwar's application had raised 'live' issues which require determination.
Rajasegaran said Anwar was ready for trial, but that 'we have advised him that his office should be protected'.
'The judiciary should not allow the office of the head of the executive to be brought to disrepute,' he said.
Lawyer Rafique Rashid Ali, representing Yusoff, called for Roz Mawar to reject the reinference application, saying it has no direct bearing on the dispute before the court.
'The questions have no merit or basis in law,' he said, adding that the judge has the option of determining them in the course of the trial if necessary.
He said Article 43 of the constitution did not expressly or implicitly shield a sitting prime minister from any lawsuits.
Rafique said Anwar's stay application should likewise be dismissed as it was simply an attempt to stall the trial, scheduled to begin on June 16.
He said the trial dates for Yusoff's suit and Anwar's counterclaim were fixed last year, but Anwar only changed his solicitors on May 23.
'The reference application was filed 23 days before the trial of the suit was to begin,' he said.
Yusoff, a grandson of the late Penang consumer advocate SM Mohamed Idris, claims he was assaulted at Anwar's home in Segambut in October 2018.
He is seeking general, special, aggravated and exemplary damages, as well as interest, costs and other relief deemed fit by the court.
Anwar denies the claim and has filed a countersuit.