PETALING JAYA: The Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) must be held accountable for its repeated failures in a number of high-profile court cases that have ended in a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA), says the Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4).
It said the recent pattern of flawed prosecutions involving political figures that ended in a DNAA showcased a possible significant deep-rooted institutional incompetence within the prosecutorial office.
“These are not normal criminal cases; they implicate corruption involving some of the most powerful political figures in the country, and as such, should be treated with the highest priority.
“It is inexcusable that DNAAs keep being granted on the basis that the AGC had failed to adhere to basic procedures, which are part of any criminal prosecution.
“Not only were they simply not prepared for this case that has been in progress for 6 years, they did not even object to the DNAA,” it said in a press statement on Friday (June 20).
This comes after former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak was granted a DNAA for three counts of money laundering involving RM27mil linked to SRC International Sdn Bhd by the High Court on Friday (June 20).
C4 said Najib’s newest DNAA joins a long list of recent similar failures by the AGC in court, including Najib and former treasury secretary-general Tan Sri Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah being granted a DNAA in the RM6.6bil criminal breach of trust case linked to payments to the International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) in November last year.
Another recent high-profile case involved Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who was granted a DNAA for all 47 graft charges involving Yayasan Akalbudi funds on Sept 4, 2023.
C4 also questioned the lack of any attempts by the AGC to publicly address its repeated failures in high-profile court cases, adding that it was sowing public distrust in the government and judiciary.
“Why have there been no public attempts to remedy this or address these prosecutorial failures?
“This lack of accountability only serves to deepen public distrust, erode confidence in the rule of law, and reinforce the perception that justice in Malaysia is neither independent nor equal,” it added.
It also called on the AGC to publicly commit to refiling the charges for all cases where political figures have received a DNAA as soon as possible.
