KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court today allowed Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia's (Bersatu) bid to challenge the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's (MACC) decision to seize its bank accounts for investigation purposes.
Judge Datuk Ahmad Kamal Md Shahid ruled that Bersatu secretary Datuk Muhammad Suhaimi Yahya, who filed the judicial review on behalf of the political party had satisfied the legal requirement for the court to hear the application.
Ahmad Kamal in his judgment said there was a prima facie case to challenge the legality of the seizure orders.
He said the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) cannot rely on old cases which are no longer good law.
"The current law is that the exercise of criminal investigative powers and the decisions of the AGC is amenable to judicial review," he said.
The court fixed Nov 28 for the next case management.
On May 29, Suhaimi filed the said application for leave to initiate a judicial review to challenge the MACC action.
Naming MACC's chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki and 19 others as the first to 20th respondents, they claimed that the decision to seize its bank accounts was done in bad faith.
Bersatu sought a declaration from the court against the MACC, that the commission should not follow the directives of the leaders of the ruling party who are in the government or follow the directives of the prime minister and/or deputy prime minister by enlisting MACC officers to initiate investigations against Bersatu, causing the issuance of an alleged wrongful seizing order.
The party also claimed that the MACC detained and charged its members and third parties to threaten them and influence them to associate the party president Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin or Bersatu with fabricated offences.
Apart from that, Bersatu is also seeking an order of certiorari to quash the seizing orders issued to the party under Section 44(1) of the Anti-Money Laundering, Anti-Terrorism Financing and Proceeds of Unlawful Activities Act 2001 to its bank accounts and to revoke it according to the court document.
The Bersatu leader also wants the MACC to unseize a sum of RM4.354 million for the expenses, operations and management of the party, and a court order for a mandamus for the MACC officers to abide by the purpose and spirit of the law in investigative procedures and processes of MACC in a fair and just manner.
Further, he is seeking a declaration that as a validly registered political party, Bersatu has rights that are protected under the Federal Constitution and that its fundamental rights should not be infringed wrongfully for collateral purposes.