Mahathir said that when he was giving his statement to current Attorney-General Idrus Harun over the suit, Idrus told him the termination of Apandi’s services was according to procedure.
“He said the government and I advised the King rightly, for Apandi’s services to be terminated. So I was shocked recently to read that a settlement was reached outside of court between the government and Apandi, with the terms kept a secret.
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“I wasn’t even informed of the terms of the settlement despite being the main witness,” the former prime minister said in a statement today.
The Langkawi MP said he then wrote to Idrus to state his disagreement over the settlement, maintaining that Putrajaya should not give in to Apandi when it did not do any wrong.
He also criticised how the terms for the settlement were kept confidential, saying Malaysians deserved to know the details especially if it involved compensation payment to Apandi.
“Does compensation need to be paid if action was taken according to the law? Where is the principle of the rule of law?
“I do not admit doing any wrong (in Apandi’s sacking) and I was ready for Apandi’s demands to be judged in court.”
Apandi’s settlement with the government was recorded before Kuala Lumpur High Court judge Akhtar Tahir on April 13.
His lawyer, Baljit Singh Sidhu, said the government agreed to settle the suit without admission of liability, but he could not disclose the terms of the settlement.
Apandi had filed the suit in September 2020, seeking a declaration that the termination of his services as attorney-general in 2018 by Mahathir was unlawful.
He asked for RM2,233,599.36 in special, punitive and general damages to be assessed by the court.
Apandi, who was a former judge, was appointed the attorney-general on July 27, 2015. His contract was to have ended on July 26, 2018.
He said the chief secretary to the government had informed him through a letter before the 14th general election that his tenure would be extended by three years.
However, in a letter dated June 5, 2018, the chief secretary informed him that the King had consented to the termination, but did not furnish any document on the royal approval.