Kuala lumpur: The High Court was informed today that the central issue in Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia's (Bersatu) judicial review concerning the freezing and seizure of two of the party's bank accounts is directly connected to the criminal proceedings against its president, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin. Senior Federal Counsel (SFC) Nurhafizza Azizan, representing the government and the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), argued that this matter should be resolved by the criminal court.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, Nurhafizza stated that the charges against Muhyiddin were made in his role as Bersatu president, establishing a clear link between his case and the party's account issues. Consequently, the matter should be settled in the criminal court instead of through judicial review. Nurhafizza added that the seizure order remains active pending a final judgment in Muhyiddin's criminal case.

Earlier, Rosli Dahlan, counsel for Bersatu, argued that the party's two bank accounts, frozen and seized in 2023, remain inaccessible. He noted that the freezing order was initially effective for three months, yet Bersatu cannot access its CIMB and AmBank accounts. Dahlan emphasized that the charges were against Muhyiddin personally, not the party.

The hearing continues before Judge Datuk Aliza Sulaiman on Feb 3 next year. On Oct 30, 2023, the High Court permitted Bersatu's request to initiate a judicial review challenging the MACC's seizure of its accounts. Capt (Rtd) Datuk Muhammad Suhaimi Yahya filed the application on May 29, 2023, naming former Attorney-General Tan Sri Idrus Harun and MACC chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki, among others, as respondents.

Bersatu contended that its CIMB and AmBank accounts were seized on April 19, 2023, without a seizure order being served under Section 50(1) of the AMLATFPUAA 2001. The party also claimed that on April 20, 2023, the MACC announced the accounts had been seized on April 11, 2023, but Bersatu was not informed of this on the stated date.