The Kuala Lumpur Sessions Court allowed the temporary release of the passport of former finance minister Daim Zainuddin’s wife from today until June 30.

Judge Azura Alwi this morning greenlighted Na’imah Abdul Khalid’s bid for temporary passport release so that she could attend an art exhibition in Basel, Switzerland, and a work meeting in Singapore.

The prosecution team led by deputy public prosecutor Wan Shaharuddin Wan Ladin did not object to the temporary passport release.

According to a copy of her affidavit supporting the bid, the exhibition titled “Art Basel” would proceed from June 10-16.

She also needed to be in Singapore for work purposes, to meet important parties linked to her companies.

She also explained through the filing that she would be back in Malaysia by June 30 and immediately hand her passport back to the Malaysian court.

The criminal court is holding her passport as part of RM250,000 bail terms linked to her ongoing asset disclosure case.

Previously, the Kuala Lumpur High Court denied her bid for permanent passport release, while upholding her right to file for temporary release of her travel document.

Asset disclosure

On Jan 23, the Sessions Court ordered the surrender of Na’imah’s passport as part of bail conditions linked to her criminal charge of alleged failure to abide by an MACC notice to disclose her assets.

The 66-year-old claimed trial to the charge framed under Section 36(2) of the MACC Act 2009.

The charge accused her of committing the offence by giving a sworn written statement that did not comply with an MACC notice under Section 36(1) of the MACC Act.

Accused of committing the offence between Dec 13 and 14 last year, she may be jailed for up to five years and fined up to RM100,000.

The assets she allegedly did not disclose involved multiple plots of land, properties, and Mercedes-Benz vehicles.

According to the annexure attached to the charge and read out in court, among the eight properties allegedly involved are Ilham Tower in Kuala Lumpur, a house in Bukit Tunku, Kuala Lumpur, as well as six plots of land - five in Kuala Lumpur and one in Penang.

Among other alleged items involved in the non-disclosure are concerning two companies, namely Ilham Tower Sdn Bhd and Ilham Baru Sdn Bhd.

Daim is also facing a similar criminal charge before the lower court.

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