PUTRAJAYA (Aug 9): The Attorney General's Chambers will oppose Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor’s application for leave (permission) to appeal to the Federal Court, where she is seeking to initiate a judicial review to nullify her solar hybrid graft trial.
Senior federal counsel Shamsul Bolhassan affirmed an affidavit in reply to Rosmah’s motion to seek leave.
In the affidavit, which was filed on Monday (Aug 7), sighted by The Edge, Shamsul said they would object to the leave so that the merits of the appeal can be heard, claiming that the five questions of law posed to the bench did not pass the threshold of Section 96(a) of the Courts of Judicature Act 1984, as they are not questions of law posed for the first time to the apex court.
Furthermore, Shamsul said the questions raised by Rosmah before the bench are limited to the facts of her case, and do not bring benefit or interests to the public.
Meanwhile, the question of fact had already been decided by the High Court and Court of Appeal in denying her leave for judicial review, he added.
A case management was held by the Federal Court on Tuesday (Aug 8) before Federal Court deputy registrar Faezahnoor Hassan, who fixed Aug 24 for another case management for Rosmah to reply to Shamsul’s affidavit.
Rosmah, 71, had named the AG, the late Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram, and the Malaysian government as respondents in the judicial review application where she sought to nullify her solar hybrid trial, owing to questions over Sri Ram’s fiat (letter of appointment) in prosecuting her.
The Court of Appeal had on July 22 unanimously dismissed her appeal to obtain leave after the High Court denied her leave to initiate a judicial review to challenge Sri Ram's fiat, and nullify her trial.
Following that, she filed her motion to the apex court by filing five questions of law and also obtained a postponement to the hearing of her appeal proper and conviction and sentence.
Rosmah was convicted by judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan, who was elevated to the Court of Appeal from the High Court this year, of all three counts of graft with regards to soliciting and obtaining bribes for the RM1.25 billion solar hybrid project for 369 schools in rural Sarawak.
For this, she was sentenced to 10 years in jail and fined an astounding RM970 million, which Rosmah is appealing.