KUALA LUMPUR: Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz has written to the High Court to seek leave to file an affidavit which he claimed would correct “factual inaccuracies” in a supporting affidavit, linked to a purported royal addendum order that should place Datuk Seri Najib Razak under house arrest.
The letter, filed yesterday through his solicitors from Cecil Abraham & Partners, was addressed to the office of High Court judge Justice Amarjeet Singh and copied to the High Court deputy registrar, the Attorney General’s Chambers and Najib’s solicitors, Messrs Shafee & Co.
It stated that the affidavit – to be affirmed by Tengku Zafrul –would specifically address the averments contained in paragraph six of the affidavit by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi dated April 9.
In the sixth paragraph of Ahmad Zahid’s affidavit, Ahmad Zahid claimed Tengku Zafrul had allegedly shown him (Ahmad Zahid) a copy of the addendum order on his (Tengku Zafrul’s) phone which he personally photographed or scanned from an original copy as shown to him by the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong.
Tengku Zafrul’s solicitors said there were factual inaccuracies which “ought to be corrected” pursuant to the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court under Order 92 Rule 4 of the Rules of Court 2012.
“For the record, we are further instructed by our client to state that our client takes no position as to the merits of the dispute between parties.
“Our client merely wishes to ensure that the facts are accurately placed before this honourable court in a neutral manner.
“We sincerely hope that this honourable court will consider and allow this written request for leave to file an affidavit on the grounds as set out above,” the letter said.
On April 9, Ahmad Zahid affirmed an affidavit in support of Najib’s application for leave for judicial review in his claims that there was a royal addendum order granted to him along with his royal pardon.
In his document, Ahmad Zahid said that the royal addendum from the former Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, which would allow Najib to go under house arrest, indeed exists.
The Umno president said he was shown the document by Tengku Zafrul, who was the former Selangor Umno treasurer, at his (Ahmad Zahid’s) house at Country Heights on Jan 30.
Najib filed the application for leave for judicial review on April 1.
He named the Home Minister, the Commissioner General of Prisons, the Attorney General, the Federal Territories Pardons Board, the Minister at the Prime Minister’s Department (Law and Institutional Reform), director-general of the legal affairs at the Prime Minister’s Department and the government as the first until the seventh respondents respectively.
In the notice of application, Najib sought a mandamus order that all of the respondents or one of them to answer and verify the existence of the addendum order dated Jan 29.
Najib is seeking a mandamus order where if the addendum order exists, all or one of the respondents must execute the royal order and immediately move him from the Kajang Prison to his residence in Kuala Lumpur where he would serve his remaining sentence under house arrest.
Justice Amarjeet has fixed June 5 to deliver his decision in the leave application.
