PUTRAJAYA: The Court of Appeal has fixed May 13 for a contempt appeal hearing by Umno Supreme Council member Lokman Noor Adam as the original date of March 13 was vacated due to the movement control order (MCO) to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Deputy public prosecutor Dusuki Mokhtar said he received an email on the matter from the court registry yesterday.
A three-member Court of Appeal bench chaired by Yaacob Md Sam had said on March 5 that they would prefer to hear submissions by Lokman’s counsel as well as the prosecution together on March 31.
Lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, representing Lokman, earlier suggested that he make his submissions first and the prosecution, later.
The bench shot down his proposal but allowed his application to stay the proceedings before High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah.
The judge was supposed to hear on March 13 the complaint by the prosecution that Lokman had shown disrespect to the court by making remarks in the midst of the 1MDB trial.
The appeal before the bench is whether a contempt action is to be initiated by the court or former attorney-general Tommy Thomas, as was done in Lokman’s case.
The appeal was also delayed as Lokman had only filed his petition of appeal which states where Sequerah had erred in procedure regarding contempt.
On Jan 14, Sequerah dismissed Lokman’s application to set aside the leave obtained by Thomas to cite him for contempt over alleged intimidation of a witness in Najib Razak’s 1MDB corruption trial.
Sequerah had previously allowed Thomas to initiate committal proceedings against Lokman for allegedly threatening witness Amhari Efendi Nazaruddin.
The prosecution submitted that Lokman’s comments about Amhari were not only tantamount to threatening the witness or other potential witnesses, but also undermined the administration of justice.
Lokman lodged a police report challenging Amhari’s credibility as a witness following the latter’s admission in the witness stand that he had received a US$200,000 loan from fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho, better known as Jho Low.
The prosecution said Lokman also gave a video interview where he allegedly attacked the integrity of the attorney-general.
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