KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 8 — The High Court’s decision to grant UMNO president Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) for his 47 graft charges involving Yayasan Akalbudi funds cannot be debated in a special Parliament sitting, according to Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
He said the Parliament sitting cannot be transformed into a courtroom to discuss the decision made by Judge Datuk Collin Lawrence Sequerah regarding Ahmad Zahid, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister.
“We cannot discuss court cases in Parliament…Parliament is not a courtroom where you can ask questions and we try to answer because the Attorney-General is not a Member of Parliament and not a minister,” he told reporters after performing Friday prayers at the Masjid Jamek Seri Petaling here today.
Anwar said this in response to the call by Angkatan Muda Keadilan (AMK) through its vice-chief Atyrah Hanim Razali yesterday for an urgent Parliament sitting to be held to discuss Ahmad Zahid’s DNAA.
Atyrah Hanim reportedly said that the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) should be given a timeframe to find new evidence to re-prosecute Ahmad Zahid, and the retrial should be conducted immediately if the Unity Government’s leadership does not want to lose its credibility.
Anwar said the government has no objection to any Member of Parliament asking about the case during the normal Dewan Rakyat sessions, but the Parliament sitting should not be turned into a courtroom.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister described as unfair the threat made by the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (MUDA) to withdraw their support to the Unity Government following the court’s decision because the decision to withdraw the charges against Ahmad Zahid does not lie with him but rests solely with the AGC.
Last Tuesday, MUDA president Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman reportedly said that MUDA would withdraw its support for the Unity Government if there were no detailed explanation from the AGC on its decision to withdraw the 47 corruption charges against Ahmad Zahid.
