.JPG "Former Malaysian External Intelligence Organisation chief Datuk Hasanah Abdul Hamid is pictured at the Kuala Lumpur High Court October 25, 2018. u00e2u20acu201d Picture by Firdaus Latif")
PETALING JAYA, Oct 26 — Former ‘spy agency’ chief Datuk Hasanah Abdul Hamid has failed in her bid to challenge the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission’s (MACC) power to deny her the right to consult a lawyer while she was in custody, Malaysiakini reported today.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court had declared that Section 28A(8) and (9) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC) was valid, and that both sub-sections did not violate her right to a lawyer while in remand, the report said.
Justice Datuk Nordin Hassan said the right to counsel for an accused person ceases when the person is arrested, adding that the right to a lawyer can be exercised during an arrest but not immediately after.
“A balance has to arise after the arrest,” the judge was quoted as saying by Malaysiakini.
“I find in the present case the two sections do not violate the Constitution and are valid laws, and do not infringe on the rights of an arrested person,” he also said.
Hasanah was remanded for five days after she was arrested by MACC on August 28. She filed her lawsuit last month, claiming that the two sections of the CPC were against Articles 5(3) and 8 of the Federal Constitution on the right to legal representation.
The former director-general of the defunct Malaysia External Intelligence Organisation (MEIO) was yesterday charged with embezzling US$12.1 million (RM50.4 million) of government funds allocated to the agency.
The charge under Section 409 of the Penal Code is punishable with a jail term of between two and 20 years and a fine upon conviction.
