The date was fixed by a deputy registrar after a case management attended by deputy public prosecutors Abdul Malik Ayob and Zander Lim, who appeared for the prosecution, and Hamidi Noh, who represented Zahid.
The source also said the attorney-general has yet to decide on representations lodged by Zahid for the appeal to be withdrawn despite several adjournments granted by the court.
Zahid put in his representations in January.
The appeal has also been fixed for mention on Jan 29 for the parties to update the deputy registrar on the outcome of the representations.
“The appeal hearing will proceed as fixed should the representations be rejected,” the source said.
FMT has contacted the DPPs and Hamidi for a response.
On Sept 23 last year, the Shah Alam High Court acquitted Zahid of all 40 charges of receiving bribes from Ultra Kirana Sdn Bhd (UKSB) to extend the company’s contract to manage the VLN.
Then High Court judge Yazid Mustafa ruled that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against Zahid, who is also the Umno president.
The prosecution filed its appeal against the acquittal on Sept 26.
On Dec 29, the prosecution filed its petition of appeal, citing 15 grounds for its challenge.
The prosecution claims that Yazid had misdirected himself by comparing the facts of the case to those of another.
It also contended that Yazid erred when comparing the facts to those in Rosmah Mansor’s corruption trial, adding that a fact scenario alone does not make Rosmah’s case a binding precedent.
The prosecution said Yazid was also wrong in his assessment of the credibility of the prosecution’s three key witnesses – former UKSB directors Harry Lee, Wan Quoris Shah Wan Abdul Ghani and David Tan.
It said the judge failed to take into consideration a witness’s testimony that a ledger presented as evidence in court was a “contemporaneous document”.
The prosecution team further contended that Yazid erred when deciding that the source of the money used by UKSB to pay Zahid needed to be explained and proven, saying that the law contained no such stipulation.
Zahid, 70, had been charged with 33 counts of receiving bribes amounting to S$13.56 million (RM42 million) from UKSB between 2014 and 2018 while he was home minister and deputy prime minister under the previous Barisan Nasional administration.
He was also charged with seven other counts of obtaining for himself the sums of S$1.15 million, RM3 million, 15,000 Swiss francs and US$15,000 from the same company in connection with his official duties.