Kota Kinabalu: The High Court here on Tuesday dismissed the Attorney General’s Chambers application for a stay of the Judicial Review proceedings commenced by former Sabah Chief Minister Tan Sri Harris Mohd Salleh to declassify Malaysian authorities’ investigation report into the Double Six Nomad plane crash in 1976.
Judge Wong Siong Tung in delivering his ruling said: “I am not persuaded that there are special circumstances to warrant a stay of the proceedings in the Applicant’s application for judicial review.
“Having considered all the evidential matters as presented and the circumstances of the case, I do not see any good grounds in the exercise of discretion to stay the proceedings in the applicant’s application for judicial review as applied for by the Attorney General pending the disposal of the appeal by the Attorney General against the decision of this Court in granting leave earlier.
“I, therefore, dismiss the Attorney General’s stay application,” said Wong.
In September, the AG’s Chambers’ applied for stay pending their appeal to the Court of Appeal against High Court Judge Wong Siong Tung’s ruling on Aug. 8 granting Harris leave to commence Judicial Review against the Government of Malaysia to compel the Government to disclose the investigation report into in a widely known air plane crash known as the Double Six Tragedy.
The court will give directions on the judicial review on Dec. 8. Wong had on Aug. 8 granted leave as applied by Harris.
Harris (applicant) filed the leave application on July 1 naming Chief Secretary of the Government of Malaysia, the Minister of Transport and the Government of Malaysia as respondents.
A similar application has also been filed with the Director General at the National Archives of Australia for the release of the investigation report conducted by the Government Aircraft Factories (GAF), manufacturer of the Nomad Aircraft 9M-ATZ.
Harris’ lawyers contend that failure to declassify and/or make public the Malaysian Investigation Report is illegal as:
- Having regard to the tragedy and the surrounding circumstances, the information contained in the investigation report concern matters of public interest, especially to the people of Sabah;
- Harris has a constitutionally guaranteed right under Articles 8 and 10 of the Federal Constitution to the information contained in the investigation report;
- There was no basis in law or fact for the continued suppression of the report; and
- The continued suppression of the report contravened Section 2C of the Official Secrets Act when read in light with Articles 8 and 10 of the Federal Constitution.
The June 6, 1976 crash involving an Australian-built Nomad 9M-ATZ aircraft at Kota Kinabalu killed 11 persons, namely the then Chief Minister of Sabah Tun Fuad Stephens, Datuk Peter Mojuntin (Local Government and Housing Minister), Chong Thain Vun (Communications and Works Minister);
Darius Binion (Assistant to the Chief Minister), Wahid Peter Andu (Permanent Secretary to the Finance Ministry), Syed Hussein Wafa (Director of the Economic Planning Unit);
Johari (Tun Fuad’s son), Captain Gandhi Nathan (the pilot), Corporal Said Mohammad (Tun Fuad’s bodyguard) and Ishak Atan (Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah’s executive assistant).
Counsel Dato Malik Imtiaz, Datuk Alex Decena and Jordan Kong represented Harris.
