PUTRAJAYA (Dec 12): Lawyers for Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman claimed that the judge's delayed written judgement — delivered over a year after finding him guilty of misappropriating over RM1 million belonging to the youth wing of his former party, Bersatu — had prejudiced against the Muar Member of Parliament.
They claimed the delay had undermined the advantage that the judge Datuk Azhar Abdul Hamid had when he was presiding over the trial and observing the proceedings firsthand, and that the written judgement itself showed that evidence that supported Syed Saddiq's defence was ignored.
“The delivery of the grounds of judgment some 13 months after the decision was made has compromised the visual advantage enjoyed by the trial judge. It has prejudiced Syed Saddiq in that aspect in that aspects of the evidence that spoke in favour the defence were not considered at all,” read the petition filed on Thursday, and sighted by The Edge.
The petition was filed by Messrs Wong Kian Kheong, the law firm appointed by the sole MP from the Malaysian United Democratic Action (Muda) party to act on his behalf.
Syed Saddiq will be represented by lawyers Datuk Yusof Zainal Abiden, Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, Alex Tan Chie Sian, Low Wei Loke, Kee Wei Lon and Beston Tan in his appeal before the Court of Appeal, which has been scheduled for March 19 and 20 next year. Yusof was formerly the solicitor general II.
Syed Saddiq's lawyers said Azhar had erred in ruling that the defence had failed to raise reasonable doubt, arguing instead that the judge had failed to appreciate the defence's case.
They claimed the judge had committed appealable errors and hence Syed Saddiq should have been freed of his conviction and sentence of seven years in jail, two strokes of the rotan, and fine of RM10 million.
“The judge did not consider all the defence as required by the law, breaching Section 182a of the Criminal Procedure Code. There was also no fair and just assessment of the defence in respect of all four charges [Syed Saddiq faced].
“Furthermore, there was complete non-consideration of several defence exhibits that were tendered in the case and the non-consideration of various aspects of evidence in favour of the defence. The learned judge’s finding on the defence's case was made against the weight of evidence to prejudice Syed Saddiq,” his lawyers added.
The lawyers also argued that the judge had erred in ruling that there was a prima facie case against Syed Saddiq, saying defence should not have been called in the first place.
Syed Saddiq was convicted on Nov 9 last year on one count of criminal breach of trust, one charge of misappropriating party funds and two money-laundering charges involving more than RM1 million belonging to Armada, Bersatu's youth wing.
Azhar only issued the written grounds on Nov 29 this year and said the sentence he handed down to the 30-year-old politician was not excessive.