Its chairman, Steven Thiru, said the case dealt with the ambit of the prosecutorial powers of the AG and the independence of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC).
“The case also concerns the cardinal principle that no government instrument is above the law in a system founded on the rule of law,” he said in a statement.
High Court Judge Hanipah Farikullah declined to grant leave for the Malaysian Bar to commence a lawsuit against the AG for his refusal to frame charges against Najib Razak over the RM2.6 billion donation and SRC International money that was alleged to have been found in the prime minister’s personal bank accounts.
In the brief grounds, Hanipah held that the decision of the AG as public prosecutor not to institute prosecution against Najib was not justiciable and not reviewable by the court.
She also said the AG had not acted beyond his powers by instructing the MACC to close its investigation papers.
The judge said the AG was not precluded from deciding whether to institute a prosecution despite his alleged position of conflict of interest as public prosecutor.
Hanipah said the AG’s refusal for the MACC to obtain the requisite assistance under the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act 2002 was not open to challenge by way of a judicial review.
Thiru said the issue of non-justiciability was irrelevant because any exercise of powers that is beyond the scope of what is permitted by law is always reviewable by a court.
On Jan 26, AG Mohamed Apandi Ali cleared Najib over the RM2.6 billion found in his bank accounts.
Apandi said the RM2.6 billion transferred into Najib’s accounts between March and April 2013 was a personal donation from the Saudi royal family.
He said the donation was not given as an inducement to do anything in Najib’s capacity as prime minister.
He said since no offence was committed, there was no necessity for Malaysia to make a request for mutual legal assistance to any foreign states to complete the investigation.
He also said there was no evidence to show Najib had knowledge or was informed that monies had been transferred from SRC International into his personal accounts.