KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court was forced to postpone the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) trial involving Datuk Seri Najib Razak today as the Pekan member of parliament needed to be in parliament to deliver a speech.
Najib was supposed to speak in the morning but his lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah said his client's slot was changed to the afternoon.
"He has extended his apologies. He tried his best to get a slot in the morning but was unable to obtain it," Shafee told Judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah when the case was called this afternoon.
Shafee said Najib was slated to take part in the parliamentary debate on Budget 2020 and wanted to raise some critical issues.
Lead prosecutor Datuk Seri Gopal Seri Ram later rose to express unhappiness over Najib's absence in court today.
He said Najib's explanation that he could not obtain a slot to speak in the morning was not a good enough excuse.
"We must also not forget the convenience of other witnesses.
"I just had to send home one witness. We are put in a very difficult position. I hope this is the last time such a thing happens," he said.
Shafee then explained that the defence had never done anything to disrupt the case from going on.
"I myself am due for an eye operation but I postponed it so that I can continue with this case.
"My client too has made it to the hearings all the time, except when he had conjunctivitis. He is really feeling very bad about today's situation too," he said.
The judge later ordered for the trial to continue tomorrow morning.