KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 ― Deputy Minister in Prime Minister's Department Mohamed Hanipa Maidin said it should no longer be impossible to prosecute the attorney-general given the upheaval that Malaysia has experienced.
Speaking to the Dewan Rakyat during Question Time, the deputy minister in charge of law conceded that AG remained the country’s primary public prosecutor but said that this should not be an obstacle to charging the office holder for any offences.
“Even though there is no separation of powers (between the offices of the Attorney General and Public Prosecutor) but I dare say under the New Malaysia there has been tremendous changes.
“We never thought we would charge a former prime minister,” he said in reference to Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
He also highlighted the in absentia charges against fugitive financier Low Taek Jho or Jho Low.
In his response to Datuk Johari Abdul (PH ― Sungai Petani), he also said the federal government was committed to exploring the separation of the AG’s advisory and prosecutorial functions.
The Federal Constitution vests in the AG the complete powers and prerogative to decide all prosecutions in the country.
