KOTA KINABALU: The High Court here has set May 7 to hear the judicial review application for an order from Election Commission (EC) not to allow Parti Warisan Sabah (Warisan) president Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal to vote and be a candidate in the 14th General Election (GE14).
Judge Azhahari Kamal Ramli also set May 4 for all parties involved to file in their submissions.
The judicial review was filed by Semporna Umno committee member Datuk Mohd Ainal Fattah on Tuesday through counsel Marcel Jude, naming EC and Mohd Shafie as first and second respondents respectively.
Marcel, when met after today’s proceedings, said the May 7 date will see the judge’s decision whether or not to accept the judicial review after the hearing, or set up a new date for the next hearing.
In the proceeding today, EC was represented by senior federal counsel Andy Razali Jaya assisted by Dorine Patrick, while Mohd Shafie was represented by counsel Datuk Douglas Lind and Chung Jing Dau.
Ainal filed the judicial review application to obtain a mandamus order from the High Court to compel EC to reject if Mohd Shafie stands as a candidate for any seat in GE14.
He also applied for an injunction to stop Mohd Shafie’s candidacy until the money from the RM7.5 billion total allocation claimed to be missing when he was serving as Rural and Regional Development Minister – which is still under Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) investigation – is returned.
Mohd Shafie was held by MACC on Oct 19 last year to assist investigations on the mishandling of funds for rural projects in this state.
The Semporna Member of Parliament (MP) incumbent was remanded for eight days before being released by the magistrate’s court here with a bail of RM100,000 with RM80,000 deposit.