Kuala Lumpur: The government’s application to strike out Najib Razak’s RM1.9 million suit against Putrajaya and former attorney-general (AG) Tommy Thomas will be heard on Aug 12.
The former prime minister filed the suit against Thomas last year for alleged misfeasance in public office in pressing 1MDB-related charges against him.
Senior federal counsel Ahmad Hanir Hambaly, who confirmed the matter, said the physical proceeding will be before High Court judge Ahmad Bache.
Najib claimed that the charges filed against him during Thomas’ tenure were “part of a long-planned, premeditated exercise”.
“This was also in line with the then (Pakatan Harapan) government’s plan.
“As an AG, he (Thomas) carried out his duties, at least in relation to the plaintiff (Najib), as if he was a ‘PH agent’,” Najib had said in a statement after the suit was filed in October.
In July 2018, Najib was charged with abuse of power, criminal breach of trust (CBT), and money laundering involving RM42 million in SRC International Sdn Bhd funds in his bank accounts.
He was convicted on seven charges by the High Court, and the Court of Appeal affirmed the conviction on Dec 8, 2021. Najib has filed an appeal to the Federal Court.
In 2018, Najib was also slapped with 25 counts of money laundering and abuse of power over alleged 1MDB funds in his bank accounts, as well as one count of allegedly tampering with the 1MDB audit report.
Both trials are ongoing.
He was also jointly charged with former Treasury secretary-general Irwan Serigar Abdullah on six charges for misappropriating public funds to make payments to International Petroleum Investment Co (IPIC) but the trial has not started.
Thomas, in response to Najib’s allegations, said the Pekan MP had no legally sustainable claim.
He said Najib’s claim that “I formed an opinion about his guilt before assuming the AG’s office is also untrue”.
“My conduct before my appointment is not relevant to the exercise of my discretion as the public prosecutor,” he said.
Najib, in objecting to the move by Thomas and the government to strike out the lawsuit, had alleged the former AG wanted to prevent the alleged “wrongdoing” from being disclosed in the open.
