KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 21 — Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah denied today that the main goal of his public forum on the Sodomy II conviction of PKR leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim was meant to defend the latter’s political rivals, Umno and Barisan Nasional (BN).

Shafee confirmed that the forum last February 17 was organised by Umno but disagreed that the talk’s “sole purpose” was to defend the party or BN.

He acknowledged that the ruling party’s Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin had, in his speech, said it was finally time for Umno and BN “to explain our side of story” after six years of being accused of plotting a political conspiracy against Anwar.

“Umno may have, through Khairy, their own agenda. I did not go there to support their agenda; my agenda is totally different,” he said under questioning in his defamation lawsuit against the Malaysian Bar and three others.

He added that he did not immediately correct Khairy and did not see a need to do so.

When it was pointed out to Shafee that the Federal Court judgement had already decided there was no basis for political conspiracy in Anwar’s case, Shafee insisted, however, that the public forum was necessary to defend his reputation.

“I advised the reverse, that the forum was necessary. And such forum would be necessary not just for Umno but to provide an equaliser to all the lies that have been told by members of the Bar — that I was a member of a ‘persecuting’ team,” said Shafee, who led the prosecution team against Anwar’s appeal at the Federal Court.

When lawyer Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan then questioned if his primary aim for the talk was to defend himself instead of the Federal Court’s judgement as he had claimed, Shafee insisted both goals were consistent as the apex court had granted a judgement in his favour.

“So by defending myself, I am defending the Federal Court as well,” he insisted.

During the same cross-examination, he also disagreed that it was improper for him, as a private lawyer who was appointed as an ad hoc prosecutor, to speak at a forum organised by Umno, also disagreeing that he was aligning himself with Umno and BN through his appearance as the talk’s sole speaker.

Earlier, he had agreed with Ambiga that former deputy public prosecutors and ad hoc prosecutors have to be “independent and free of political influence”.

Shafee was testifying in his defamation suit against two senior lawyers — Tommy Thomas and Tan Sri VC George over their proposed motion for last year’s Malaysian Bar AGM to censure his conduct following Anwar’s February 10 sodomy conviction.

Shafee claimed the published motion was intended to damage his reputation, citing among other things the motion’s accusation against him of drawing attention to his prowess allegedly as a top-rate prosecutor and demeaning Anwar and his legal team, and the way the defence was conducted.

The hearing before High Court judge Datuk Hanipah Farikullah for Shafee’s defamation suit against Tommy, George, the Malaysian Bar and its former president Christopher Leong resumes this Friday.