KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 19): The widow of Tun Daim Zainuddin on Tuesday insisted that the criminal charge against him go for a full trial, confident that he will be exonerated.
There is no need for the newly-minted attorney general to review, discontinue, or withdraw the prosecution, Toh Puan Na’imah Abdul Khalid, wife of the recently deceased Daim, who was former finance minister, said in a statement.
“I state categorically on behalf of Daim, that it was his wish that the pending charge against him be proceeded with in court until conclusion, whatever happens to him,” she said. “Daim looked forward to his day in court and had no doubt that he would be finally acquitted.”
The statement comes after newly minted Attorney General (AG) Datuk Mohd Dusuki Mokhtar said he would review the ongoing prosecution of the former finance minister, following his death last week.
Daim, 86, passed away at the Assunta Hospital in Petaling Jaya at 8.41am on Wednesday, Nov 13. A well-known finance minister and businessman, and a former Umno treasurer, Daim was pivotal in steering the country twice out of recession in the 1990s.
Last week, the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) prosecution head Datuk Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin asked for patience on the prosecution’s next step.
Na’imah said she has instructed her lawyers to formally communicate with the AG, that they do not want the case to be dropped.
“I have instructed my solicitors to write to the AG to give notice of our resolve in this matter,” she said. “My counsel will accordingly inform the KL Sessions Court of our determination that the trial be proceeded with when the matter resumes on the 20th of November 2024.”
There is a case management scheduled for Nov 20 at the Sessions Court before presiding judge Azura Alwi, which was to allow Daim’s lawyers to inform the court of his health condition.
Na’imah reiterated that the MACC’s investigation against Daim and subsequent charge against him was politically motivated by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
“We have consistently said from the beginning of the MACC’s so-called investigation, more than one-and-a-half-years ago, that this is a frivolous, malicious and politically motivated action against Daim,” she said.
To date, Na’imah noted that neither Anwar, nor MACC chief Tan Sri Azam Baki, have been able to state the offence Daim had committed that led to the investigation. “They cannot say what offence, because there is no such offence,” she said.
Anwar will not be allowed to hide behind the death to evade responsibility for the investigation, and his alleged “public slanders” against Daim, Na’imah said. “Daim’s eventual acquittal will prove Anwar’s perfidy and deceit,” she added.
On Jan 29, Daim had pleaded not guilty to a charge of failing to comply with an MACC notice to declare his assets, including several luxury vehicles, companies, and properties across Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Perak, and Kedah.
Na’imah, 66, was similarly charged on Jan 23 with failing to comply with a notice to declare her assets, which include Menara Ilham and several properties in Kuala Lumpur and Penang.
They were both charged under Section 36(2) of the MACC Act, which carries a penalty of up to five years’ imprisonment and a maximum fine of RM100,000 upon conviction.
Besides this, the MACC had Daim and his family’s assets frozen, including the iconic Ilham Tower near the Kuala Lumpur City Centre.
The High Court had on March 4 quashed an application by Daim, Na’imah, and their children for a judicial review of the MACC’s investigation into their finances, which had led to the freezing of various accounts they own and the seizure of Ilham Tower.