Anwar Ibrahim’s statement from the dock on a conspiracy to oust him from politics was not given proper weightage by the Kuala Lumpur High Court and the Court of Appeal, his defence team submits.

Lawyer N Surendran for Anwar said both courts only allocated one paragraph in their respective judgments regarding this.

 

"Looking at the Court of Appeal judgment there were adverse comments made regarding Anwar's statement from the dock," the lawyer who is also Padang Serai MP said.

 

Surendran (left) , who himself is facing charges of sedition over the very same remarks in Anwar's defence, said the fact that Saiful admitted he met senior police officer Mohd Rodwan Mohd Yusof (who was also involved in Sodomy I) raises doubt.

 

The defence lawyer said the complainant agreed that Mohd Rodwan had called him on his phone and they both met at Concorde Hotel, Kuala Lumpur on June 24, 2008.

This led to Saiful meeting then Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak at his Taman Duta home later that night.

 

"How did Mohd Rodwan get Saiful's handphone (number) and they did not meet at a hotel lobby but in a hotel room. Saiful also met Najib two days before the alleged sodomy incident.

 

"The next day, he called the Inspector General of Police Musa Hassan. He later met Ezam Mohd Nor and Mumtaz Jaafar, on June 27.

"It was only two days after the alleged sodomy incident that Saiful lodged a report," he said.

Ezam (right) , a former PKR Youth chief is now BN senator while Mumtaz, a former national athlete reportedly friends with Najib’s wife.  

 

Supported by Saiful’s testimony, Anwar's statement from the dock only strengthens the argument that there was a pre-arranged plan to frame the opposition leader, he said.

He added that although Anwar gave an unsworn statement, the court should treat that there is some weightage to it and not disregard it altogether.

"The complainant was a dropout and used this (sodomy incident) to achieve his devious ends," he said.

 

Chief Justice Arifin Zakaria heads a five-member bench at the Federal Court in hearing Anwar's appeal and the prosecution's appeal to enhance the five years jail term.

Consensual or non-consensual

 

Earlier, senior lawyer and retired Federal Court judge Gopal Sri Ram, who was brought in at the eleventh hour to lead the defence, said there are serious questions regarding the allegation on whether it was consensual or non-consensual.

 

"Saiful claimed it was non-consensual but Anwar was charged with consensual sodomy. According to the law, a person is charged based on what is complained upon," he submitted.

 

The inconsistency of the charge, he said had led then lawyer Karpal Singh to apply for Saiful's cautioned statement.

However, he said the High Court ruled that it cannot give the cautioned statement.

 

“The statement is vital to determine the charge. By charging under a different section, Saiful risked being impeached,” he warned.

 

He also questioned why the complainant had brought with him a lubricant on the day of the incident, if he claims it was non-consensual.

 

"This challenges his credibility as a witness," the senior lawyer said.

 

Earlier, Gopal (above) told the court that Saiful was just spicing up his testimony when he recounted an alleged past sodomy incident.

 

He said such evidence had been expunged by the trial judge and it should not be taken into consideration.

 

The hearing continues tomorrow with submissions from defence lawyers Surendran, Ram Karpal Singh on DNA evidence and Sangeet Kaur Deo, who would submit on the evidence taken from Anwar's lock up cell.

 

This will be followed by a reply by senior lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who is leading the prosecution.

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