Lawyers claim 'double standards' in probes involving Na'imah, Nurul Izzah

Na’imah Abdul Khalid’s lawyers have questioned the police’s supposed lack of updates on a report filed against PKR deputy president Nurul Izzah Anwar for allegedly engaging a foreign consulting firm to pressure then-premier Najib Abdul Razak a decade ago.

In a statement today, the lawyers said the police probe against former minister Daim Zainuddin’s widow under Section 124B of the Penal Code exposed a “glaring disparity in statutory thresholds” when contrasted with the “unaddressed” report against Nurul Izzah, who is also Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s daughter.

Section 124B criminalises activities deemed detrimental to parliamentary democracy and carries a jail term of up to 20 years.

“In (the case involving Nurul Izzah), public-domain emails revealed her collaboration with Washington consultancy Pegasus Strategies to lobby the United States government to intervene against a sitting prime minister.

“Yet, Bukit Aman has recorded no statements and summoned zero witnesses.

“If a private citizen’s PR engagement satisfies Section 124B, the deliberate enlistment of a foreign government demands identical treatment,” the lawyers from Messrs Raj & Sach asserted.

They further claimed that the current situation depicts “naked selective prosecution” against a “politically inconvenient” private citizen, while individuals with familial ties to the government face “absolute silence” from authorities.

Building pressure against Najib govt

On March 2, MalaysiaNow reported that email correspondence dating back to 2016 involving senior PKR leaders, including Nurul Izzah, depicted the party’s alleged collaboration with foreign parties, including a Washington-based law firm and political consultancy company.

The collaboration is said to have been aimed at finding ways to persuade the White House to build political pressure against Najib’s government, which was then plagued by the 1MDB global financial scandal.

There were also efforts to secure Anwar’s release as he was serving his prison sentence for sodomy.

Former PKR vice-president Sivarasa Rasiah later confirmed with Malaysiakini that the communications had taken place, stressing that lobbying for the release of political detainees was normal and “perfectly acceptable”.

On March 6, businessperson Albert Tei and several other individuals filed a police report over the matter, urging authorities to investigate the issue under Section 124B and provisions under the Security Offences (Special Measures) Act 2012 (Sosma).

‘Communications plan’

The MalaysiaNow report came on the heels of a leaked 13-page document understood to be a “communications plan” prepared in August last year, allegedly part of efforts by Daim’s family to preserve the late former finance minister’s reputation amid legal action by the MACC.

The plan, designed to run over two years up to the next general election, outlined a strategy which seemingly seeks to undermine the government’s narrative by framing legal proceedings against Daim and his family as a politically motivated attack, rather than a legitimate anti-corruption effort.

READ MORE: Govt's action on Daim's family just like Najib-era clampdown: 1MDB whistleblower

The document surfaced online after Inspector-General of Police Khalid Ismail said police are probing an alleged plot to exert pressure on Anwar and former MACC chief commissioner Azam Baki.

According to Khalid, the plot involved an “influential individual” utilising international media outlets, with the case being probed under Section 124B after police received a report over the alleged conspiracy on Feb 26.

A woman, Daim’s two children, two lawyers, and several representatives of an international strategic communications firm were said to have attended an online meeting in July last year to discuss the purported plan.

Na’imah has repeatedly denied any form of effort to topple the government, asserting that the content of the police report was “false and preposterous”.

READ MORE: 'Mother of all lies': Lawyer denies Na'imah plotted to topple govt

False assertions

In their statement today, Na’imah’s legal representatives also denounced Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department director M Kumar’s remarks last week.

Refuting Kumar’s “false assertions” that the police were unable to contact Na’imah and her sons, the lawyers said the “misleading claim” has created an inaccurate impression of the family’s cooperation.

“In reality, legal counsel responded in writing on the exact day the police notice was received.

“Our clients remain fully contactable and cooperative through their lawyers,” they emphasised.

On May 26, Kumar said police had attempted to contact Na’imah and her sons shortly after they were linked to a probe, but found they had already left the country “shortly after” the report was lodged.

He added that the investigation paper for the case had been referred to the Attorney-General’s Chambers after statements were recorded from 17 witnesses, with police now awaiting further instructions.

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