Opposition lawmaker and lawyer N Surendran says fundamental that a statement made by a litigant in a document filed in court cannot be made the subject of criminal investigation.
- Lawyer says no legal basis for police probe on Ambiga
- Alleged statement over which Ambiga was being investigated not even made by her
- Apparently, Malaysian police have no jurisdiction over the issue
- Maria Chin asks what alarm has been raised
- Ambiga says she hasn’t been contacted by the cops
In response to a news report that the IGP had confirmed police were investigating Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan for allegedly making a statement causing public alarm, Padang Serai MP N Surendran said that a fundamental aspect of law in Malaysia and other civilised countries states that no one can be accused of a criminal offence for an act or omission committed by another party.
Hence, the Opposition lawmaker said Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Mohamad Fuzi Harun must explain the legal basis for initiating a criminal investigation against Ambiga.
“This is also simple logic, and basic fairness,” Surendran said in a statement.
It was reported that police began investigations following a report lodged by Umno members on Nov 1.
Surendran, who is also a lawyer, further pointed out that Ambiga’s “so-called offence” originated from court documents filed by Clare Rewcastle-Brown of Sarawak Report in the UK, adding that Rewcastle-Brown was herself being sued for defamation by Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang.
He added that if Abdul Hadi has an issue with Ambiga’s alleged remarks as stated in Rewcastle-Brown’s defence documents, the PAS president is able to remedy it in his ongoing civil lawsuit in the UK courts.
“How does this fall under the jurisdiction of the Malaysian police?” Surendran asked.
“As the allocation of police resources is a matter of public interest, I call upon the Inspector General of Police to respond to the above points and explain the legal basis for the investigation upon Ambiga,” he added.
Bersih 2.0 chief Maria Chin Abdullah also hit out at the harassment of Ambiga, FMT reported.
“I personally do not see what alarm has been raised in Malaysia through Clare Rewcastle’s defence when she named Ambiga as one of her witnesses,” she said.
She added that the issues in Clare’s defence were not new as they had been discussed in Malaysian courts.
“Let the UK court proceed and do not harass, threaten and tamper with the witnesses.
“Hands off Ambiga and let the truth prevail,” Maria said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Ambiga said in a text message to the news portal that she has yet to be contacted by the police.
She had previously hit out at critics for harassing her, labelling it a form of persecution, over her alleged role in providing information to Rewcastle-Brown on senior PAS leaders having received large sums of money from Prime Minister Najib Razak.
Related reports:
Nov 3, Ambiga Claims Intimidation Following Sarawak Report Naming Her as Source
Oct 31, Ambiga Declines to Comment on Being Named as Sourced by Sarawak Report