The Sessions Court in Kuala Lumpur has acquitted former law minister Zaid Ibrahim over a blog post claiming that Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak is a danger to the country.

Judge Zaman Mohd Noor ruled that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case because it failed to call Najib to testify in court.

"There is a need to call the victim, (to ask) whether he is annoyed and how he felt.

"The prosecution has failed to establish a prima facie case and the accused is released," Zaman  said.

Zaman made the decision based on the Section 233 (1)(a) of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998, which criminalises the use of the Internet and cause annoyance to "another person."

Although the prosecution argued there was no need to hear Najib’s testimony, the defence insisted that it was necessary for the affected party to testify in court.

In his ruling, Zaman said the term "another person" stipulated in the Act should refer to a specific person or the victim.

Zaid, who is now a DAP member, was accused of uploading offensive content with his posting titled “Rally Behind Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad” on his blog, with the intention of hurting the feelings of others.

The post contains the text of a speech delivered at the Royal Selangor Club, Kuala Lumpur on Sept 2, 2015.

Zaid could face a maximum fine of RM50,000, a year’s jail, or both upon conviction.

Setting precedent

When met outside the court, Zaid noted that it was "refreshing" to see a judge making an independent ruling. 

"It is very refreshing that we have a judge who was not worried about making the right decision.

"I hope it (the decision today) will set a precedent in Section 233 of CMA, which has been used all the time against people they don't like.

"While with the people they like, they don't use (CMA) although they may make offensive statements," he said. 

Describing the offending article, Zaid noted that most of it focused on what is needed to bring about change in the country. 

"They just picked one line in my article that mentioned Najib is a danger as the leader for the country, which is also factual.

"But the bulk of the story is about what needs to be done and what kind of leader can bring about change."

Meanwhile, deputy public prosecutor Wan Shaharudin Wan Ladin (photo) affirmed that the government will appeal the decision. 

"We respect the decision of the court, but still we will appeal. We have another avenue in the high court, so wait and see," he added. 

Wan Shaharudin also stressed that there is no need for the prosecution to call victims to the stand under Section 233 of CMA. 

If today's Sessions Court's decision stands, he pointed out, the prosecution would even have to call rulers to the stand for similar cases in the future.