Kuala lumpur: The prosecution has outlined 24 grounds in its appeal to the Federal Court, arguing that the Court of Appeal made errors in acquitting former Felda chairman Tan Sri Mohd Isa Abdul Samad of nine corruption charges.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the prosecution’s petition, filed on June 26, seeks to reinstate the High Court’s 2012 decision, which found Mohd Isa guilty, sentencing him to six years’ imprisonment and imposing a fine of RM15.45 million, with a default sentence of 18 years in prison. The case management is scheduled for this Monday, as indicated by the Court e-filing System Malaysia.
The prosecution contends that the Court of Appeal erred in law by overturning the High Court’s findings, which established that Mohd Isa instructed his former special political officer, Muhammad Zahid Md Arip, to solicit bribes from Ikhwan Zaidel, a Board Member of Gegasan Abadi Properties Sdn Bhd. Evidence presented showed Mohd Isa had indirectly instructed Muhammad Zahid to solicit bribes, which were subsequently handed over in stages.
The prosecution further argues that the Court of Appeal was mistaken in its assessment of evidence from Ikhwan, which suggested that Mohd Isa had not requested gratification during meetings in his office. The petition highlights the High Court’s factual finding that Mohd Isa instructed Muhammad Zahid to accept bribes, interpreted from the phrase ‘If they give anything later, you just take it’ (kalau diorang bagi apa-apa nanti kau ambil lah).
The prosecution states that Muhammad Zahid, a prosecution witness, understood the directive to accept anything given by Ikhwan on behalf of Mohd Isa. The Court of Appeal’s contrary interpretation, that the statement was not a specific solicitation request, is challenged by the prosecution.
Furthermore, the prosecution argues that the Court of Appeal’s findings were inconsistent with the High Court’s factual findings based on credible testimonies from Muhammad Zahid and Ikhwan. The prosecution emphasizes that Muhammad Zahid’s testimony had a factual basis, following a second meeting where Ikhwan expressed gratitude for the hotel purchase approval by Felda Investment Corporation Sdn Bhd (FICSB).
The prosecution claims Mohd Isa’s statement to Muhammad Zahid constituted a specific instruction to solicit and receive bribes from Ikhwan. The Court of Appeal’s decision, involving Justices Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim, Datuk Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera, and Datuk S.M. Komathy Suppiah, overturned the High Court’s 2021 decision, which found Mohd Isa guilty of corruption charges between July 21, 2014, and December 11, 2015.
The notice of appeal was filed by the prosecution on March 7, last year. Mohd Isa, the former Negeri Sembilan Menteri Besar, is accused of dishonestly receiving RM3,090,000 from Ikhwan through Muhammad Zahid for facilitating the hotel purchase by FICSB for RM160 million. The charges are framed under Section 16(a)(A) of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act 2009, with penalties under Section 24(1) of the same law.