Appellate court dismisses final review bid by Bung Moktar, wife over graft case

The Star

22-05-2025

PUTRAJAYA: Kinabatangan Member of Parliament Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad failed in their final attempt to challenge the Court of Appeal's decision ordering them to enter their defence on three corruption charges involving RM2.8mil.
This followed a decision by a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, led by Justice Datuk Che Mohd Ruzima Ghazali, which unanimously dismissed the couple's application for leave to review the decision on Thursday (May 22).
Justice Che Mohd Ruzima, who sat with Court of Appeal judges Datuk Azizul Azmi Adnan and Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid, said the couple failed to demonstrate exceptional circumstances or a miscarriage of justice that would justify a review of the ruling.
On Nov 18 last year, a Court of Appeal panel led by Justice Datuk Ahmad Zaidi Ibrahim allowed the prosecution's appeal and overturned the High Court's decision to acquit Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette, ordering both to enter their defence.
The couple filed the leave applications in March this year under Rule 105 of the Rules of the Court of Appeal 1994, contending that the previous Court of Appeal panel lacked jurisdiction to hear the prosecution's appeal and wanted the review panel to reinstate the High Court ruling.
In delivering the court's decision, Justice Che Mohd Ruzima said the Court of Appeal had always exercised caution when invoking its power to review earlier decisions, as such a review, on the face of it, runs contrary to the principle of finality.
The judge said that when counsel for Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette submitted that there had been an injustice in the case, the court observed that the couple were not without an alternative remedy.
"The point raised before us can be canvassed in an appeal from the Sessions Court, should a conviction subsequently be recorded. We are of the view that the threshold requirements for leave to review the prior decision of this court have not been met.
"We are also of the view that this is a point that may validly be raised at the end of the defence case. For these reasons, we find that the threshold requirement for leave to review this court's previous decision has not been fulfilled. Therefore, this application is dismissed," he said.
In Thursday's proceedings, the prosecution was represented by deputy public prosecutors Law Chin How, Mohd Fadhly Mohd Zamry and Maziah Mohaide, while lawyers Datuk Seri K. Kumaraendran and M. Athimulan appeared for Bung Moktar and Zizie Izette, respectively.