Dr M denied the chance to vindicate himself over Batu Puteh, lawyers say
PETALING JAYA : Dr Mahathir Mohamad's lawyers have slammed the government's decision not to haul the former prime minister to court over his role in the Batu Puteh issue due to his age.
In a statement, Zainur Zakaria and Rafique Rashid Ali said Mahathir had been deprived of his right to vindication.
'We, the lawyers for Tun Mahathir, who have been looking forward to the opportunity to cross-examine the members of the Cabinet who claimed to have been deceived by Tun, are disappointed,' they said.
A royal commission of inquiry (RCI) last year found that Mahathir had likely acted deliberately to influence the Cabinet to discontinue review applications regarding Batu Puteh's sovereignty in 2018, despite the views of international consultants who said the applications had a reasonable likelihood of success.
The RCI recommended that a police report be lodged against Mahathir, saying a criminal investigation could be initiated under Section 415(b) of the Penal Code for cheating.
On Tuesday, however, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told the Dewan Rakyat that the government would not take action even though Mahathir 'was wrong' as the matter involved 'a former prime minister who is 100 years old'.
In a post on X yesterday, Mahathir said he did not need to be granted immunity due to his age, and that he should be taken to court to be proven guilty.
He also accused Anwar of acting 'as judge and prosecutor' in the matter.
In their statement, Zainur and Rafique said it was not for the prime minister to conclude that Mahathir had committed a crime or wrongdoing based solely on the RCI's recommendations.
'It is for the court to decide,' they added.
They also said that the RCI had breached 'important principles of natural justice in the conduct of the inquiry', as Mahathir and his lawyers had been barred from attending and could offer no defence against the allegations.
Zainur and Rafique said such rights were enshrined not only in common law but also in the form of statutory rights, as stipulated in the Commission of Enquiry Act 1950.
'This fundamental right was denied to Mahathir on the grounds that the inquiry was merely 'a fact-finding inquiry'.
'However, the findings and recommendations of the commission proved otherwise,' they said.
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