Saiful a liar, says Karpal

KUALA LUMPUR: Lawyer Karpal Singh has accused Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan of being a liar and not a credible witness.

Karpal, the lead counsel in the sodomy trial of Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, advised the High Court here not to believe Mohd Saiful in the light of evidence adduced by orthopaedic surgeon Dr Thomas Hoogland.

(Dr Hoogland said he first treated Anwar in April 2001 when the PKR adviser was in prison. The surgeon treated Anwar again at the Alpha Klinik Hospital in Munich, Germany, in September 2004 after he was released from prison).

On May 16, Justice Mohd Zabidin Mohd Diah ordered Anwar to enter his defence after ruling that the complainant was a credible witness.

Karpal reminded the court that Dr Hoogland had said it was unlikely a man of Anwar’s age could have performed the sexual act as described by Mohd Saiful, due to his (Anwar’s) back problem.

He said it was also difficult to believe Mohd Saiful acted like a lamb and obeyed the accused’s instructions although he (Mohd Saiful) had the opportunity to escape from the bedroom where the alleged sodomy took place.

“There was no evidence the bedroom door was locked. He could have rushed out from the bedroom and the hall.

“Instead, he (Mohd Saiful) says the accused invited him to the dining hall and he accepted,” Karpal argued.

He submitted that Mohd Saiful, after being allegedly sodomised, had also not shown any sign of distress as he had coffee with the accused.

Karpal said Mohd Saiful was with the accused for 20 minutes, adding the complainant’s credibility should be reappraised by the court.

Karpal said Mohd Saiful had further denied, under cross-examination, that he had not told Hospital Pusrawi’s Dr Mohd Osman Abdul Hamid that a piece of plastic had been inserted into his anus.

“Mohd Saiful clearly lied when he said he had not told Dr Mohd Osman about this,” said Karpal, who also asked the court to recall Mohd Saiful and summon DPP Farah Azlina Latif to ensure a just decision of the case.

“Farah, until her alleged affair (with Mohd Saiful) became public among the prosecution team, would be privy to the investigation papers.

“This in turn would have created the opportunity for Mohd Saiful to have access to the investigation papers and, accordingly, tailor his evidence to the detriment of the defence.”

Karpal also submitted that the criticism by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak against Anwar, at the recent Umno general assembly, was gross interference in the course of justice in a trial in progress.