PUTRAJAYA: The 33 assemblymen’s bid for a stay of the High Court’s ruling over the Sabah Yang Dipertua Negeri’s decision in dissolving the state legislative assembly will be heard on Sept 7, five days before the nomination day set for the state election.
The Court of Appeal also set the same day to hear the appeal by the 33 assemblymen, who are led by former chief minister Tan Sri Musa Aman, against the Kota Kinabalu High Court’s dismissal of their application for leave for a judicial review to challenge the decision of the Yang Dipertua Negeri on July 30.
Justice Datuk Yaacob Md Sam, who chaired a three-member bench which included Justices Datuk P. Ravinthran and Datuk Wira Ahmad Nasfy Yasin, set the date after Musa’s counsel Tengku Fuad Tengku Ahmad told the panel that the Sabah Attorney-General’s Chambers (SAGC) and the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) only received a notice of motion for a stay of the High Court’s verdict yesterday, and they needed time to reply to the cause papers.
Tengku Fuad said the stay application was filed on Aug 24 and the state AGC as well as the AGC had an agreement for the application to be heard on Sept 7.
“However, I have been instructed by the applicants (33 assemblyman), if the application could be heard early on the 4th of September.
“The reason my lords why we asked for the 4th is the nomination day is on Sept 12, and even if we are successful in the appeal proper, we still have to hear the judicial review in the High Court.
“So, given the short time frame as well as the urgency of the matter, we will seek the 4th of September also for the appeal to be heard,” he said.
Sabah AG Brenndon Keith Soh, who was representing Sabah Yang Dipertua Negeri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin and Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal, and Senior Federal Counsel Suzana Atan, who acted for the Election Commission (EC), informed the court that they needed time to reply to the affidavits pertaining to the application and asked for Sept 7 for the hearing date.
The court then fixed Sept 7 to hear the stay application and appeal by the 33 assemblymen.
“We fix Sept 7 as the hearing date for judicial review appeal and also the stay application will be heard on the same day to allow parties to update cause papers and affidavits,” said Justice Yaacob.
Last Friday High Court Judicial Commissioner Leonard David Shim dismissed the 33 assemblymen’s application for leave for a judicial review to challenge the decision of the Yang Dipertua Negeri in dissolving the state legislative assembly.
Shim ruled that the second respondent in the case — Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal — had acted within the Sabah Constitution in requesting the first respondent, Sabah Yang Dipertua Negeri Tun Juhar Mahiruddin, to dissolve the state assembly.
He also said the proclamation to dissolve the state assembly was constitutional and valid.
In their application for the leave for judicial review, Musa and the assemblymen backing him are seeking court orders to quash Mohd Shafie’s request to Tun Juhar to dissolve the assembly; quash the proclamation of the dissolution of the assembly; and quash the Sabah state government gazette notification on the dissolution.
The 33 elected representatives claimed on July 29 that they made up the majority in the state assembly and wanted Tun Juhar to swear in a new government, which would oust the state government of Mohd Shafie.
Mohd Shafie, who is Semporna MP and incumbent assemblyman for Senallang, pre-empted Musa’s move by advising Tun Juhar to dissolve the state assembly, which had 65 members at that time, including five nominated assemblymen.
In July last year, the Dewan Rakyat approved a Bill that provides for the Sabah state assembly to have 73 seats, 13 more than in the dissolved assembly.
The EC has fixed Sept 12 as the nomination day and Sept 26 for polling. – Bernama
