Court of Appeal judge Yaacob Md Sam, who delivered the oral judgment, said the injunction should remain in force as Najib had been cleared by the attorney-general (AG) of any criminal offence in relation to the RM2.6 billion found in the prime minister’s private bank accounts.
“We take judicial notice that the AG had cleared the respondent (Najib) after investigations by police, Bank Negara, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and the result has been disclosed to the public,” he said of the unanimous decision.
Yaacob said the High Court judge also did not misdirect himself in law and as such the interim injunction would remain in force pending the outcome of Najib’s defamation suit against Pua.
“The defendant (Pua) has also the intention to repeat the defamatory statement (by uploading the video),” Yaacob said, adding that Najib had fulfilled all requirements of the High Court to obtain the injunction.
On Jan 26, a three-member bench, chaired by Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim, and including Zaleha Yusof and Yaacob, had heard submissions from lawyers for Najib and Pua but reserved judgment.
Najib’s lawyer Mohd Hafarizam Harun, who made his submission without producing documents, told the bench that the MACC in August 2015 had informed the public that the RM2.6 billion (US$681 million in 2013) was a donation to the prime minister.
“The AG, at a press conference on Jan 26, 2016, confirmed the money was a gift from an Arab royal family,” he said, adding that US$620 million was later returned to the donor.
He said the AG had informed the public that the prime minister had committed no criminal offence under the Penal Code or the MACC Act 2009.
Further, Hafarizam said, the PAC on April 7, 2016, also revealed that the RM2.6 billion did not come from state investor, 1MDB.
“This court must take judicial notice of the statements of the MACC and the AG, and the findings of the PAC,” he said, adding that Pua’s defence was not truthful.
Hafarizam said the injunction should remain in force or else it could cause irreparable damage to the prime minister.
A special task force, consisting of the police, MACC, Bank Negara and the Attorney-General’s Chambers, was set up in July 2015 after business daily The Asian Wall Street Journal revealed that RM2.6 billion (US$681 million) had been found in Najib’s bank accounts.
On Aug 4, High Court judge Mohd Zaki Abdul Wahab dismissed Pua’s application that the video should remain on his Facebook page to be viewed by the public pending the outcome of Najib’s defamation suit.
Pua then filed an appeal against the ruling.
The injunction means that Pua is barred from uploading the contents of the video on his Facebook page. The video had been removed from Pua’s Facebook on April 24 following a court order.
Najib, in his statement of claim filed on April 21, said the two-minute 21-second video, entitled “BN abandons all Bills to give precedence to PAS RUU355 Private Member’s Bill”, was uploaded on Pua’s Facebook page.
Najib said the live video was directed at him and was done with malice and bad intention to defame him.
Further, he said, Pua had also uttered statements in the video that the tabling of the bill was a charade to divert attention from the 1MDB fiasco and the RM2.6 billion found in the private accounts of Najib.
The prime minister is seeking from Pua an unconditional written apology to be published in at least two newspapers.
Meanwhile, Pua’s lawyer Gobind Singh Deo told reporters that he had instruction to file an appeal in the Federal Court as today’s ruling had wide legal ramifications.
“Usually, an injunction will not be allowed when a defendant has raised all defences available in defamation. The court dismissed our appeal on grounds that the court took notice that the AG had cleared Najib,” he said.
This is the second lawsuit by Najib against Pua, the DAP national publicity chief.
Najib sued him for defamation in March 2015 over his speech on the 1MDB issue made at a DAP fund-raising dinner in November 2014.
Also named as respondent in that lawsuit was MediaRakyat portal owner Chan Chee Kong.
The matter is still pending in the Court of Appeal following an appeal by Najib.
Pua, on the other hand, filed a lawsuit against Najib for alleged abuse of the latter’s public office pertaining to 1MDB funds.
The High Court, in September, struck out the suit on the grounds that Pua had no legal standing and could not be an interested party in 1MDB, a finance ministry-owned company.
Tony Pua files response to Najib’s bid to remove offensive video