2 theSun | THURSDAY APRIL 9 2009

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Najib to unveil new cabinet today

KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk
Seri Najib Tun Razak will announce the new
cabinet line-up at 3pm today, a statement from
the Prime Minister’s office said.
It said Najib will have an audience with
Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal
Abidin at 11am today to seek his consent on
the line-up.
The statement also said the ministers and
deputy ministers will take their oaths of office,
loyalty and secrecy at 9.30am tomorrow at
Istana Negara.
The announcement of the new cabinet,
coming in the wake of Najib’s appointment as
prime minister on April 3, will be broadcast
live by local television stations.
Yesterday, more Barisan Nasional compo-
nent leaders were seen calling at the prime
minister’s office here.
The first leader seen leaving the office at
Bangunan Perdana Putra at 11.35am was Parti
Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu Sarawak (PBB)
Federal Court will decide Perak state seats issue
president Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud.
Abdul Taib told reporters that he had
submitted the list of potential ministers from
Sarawak to Najib for his consideration.
“The list is the same as the one submitted
to the former prime minister (Tun Abdullah
Ahmad Badawi),” he said, adding he also gave
The list is the same as the one
submitted to the former prime
minister. Maybe there’ll be a good
surprise for Sabah and Sarawak.’
– Abdul Taib
his views to the new prime minister.
“Maybe there’ll be a good surprise for Sabah
and Sarawak,” the Sarawak chief minister
said.
MIC president Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu said
he had also submitted his party’s list to Najib.
Samy Vellu said he is leaving it to the
prime minister whether or not to increase
the number of MIC representatives in the new
cabinet.
There are now 32 cabinet ministers for 27
ministries with nearly two-thirds of the ap-
pointments from Umno, the biggest component
in the 13-party Barisan Nasional.
Four of the ministers are from MCA, and
one each from MIC, Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS),
Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu (PBB), Parti
Bersatu Rakyat Sarawak (SUPP) and the United
Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organi-
sation (Upko).
Another leader who met Najib yesterday
was SUPP president Tan Sri Dr George Chan
Hong Nam who told reporters that he was
happy with the meeting.
Speculation has been rife that the size of the
cabinet will be trimmed. – Bernama
» See also Page 7
briefs
Altantuya murder case
verdict today
PETALING JAYA: The two accused in the
murder of Mongolian national Altantuya
Shaariibuu in October 2006, Cpl Sirul
Azhar Umar and Chief Insp Azilah Hadri,
will know their fate today.
Shah Alam High Court judge Datuk
Mohd Zaki Md Yasin had fixed the date
on Feb 17 after both prosecution and
defence had wrapped up their submission
at the end of the defence case.
Both Azilah, 33, and Sirul, 37, from the
police special action unit, are charged
with murdering Altantunya , 28, between
10pm on Oct 19 and 1am on Oct 20, 2006,
in Mukim Bukit Raja, Shah Alam. Sirul gave
testimony under oath while Sirul gave his
statement from the dock.
On Oct 31, 2008, political analyst Abdul
Razak Abdul Baginda was discharged and
acquitted at the end of the prosecution
case on a charge of abetment.
Zaki had ruled that the prosecution
had failed to make out a prima facie case
against Abdul Razak but ordered Azilah
and Sirul to enter their defence.

PUTRAJAYA: The Federal Court yes-
terday decided, for the first time, to
hear and determine the constitutional
issue over who has the power to de-
clare vacancies in the Perak legislative
assembly seats.
Court of Appeal president Tan Sri
Alauddin Mohd Sheriff, who presided
the five-member bench, held that the
court had the jurisdiction to hear the
issue under article 63 of the Perak Con-
stitution and dismissed the preliminary
objection by Speaker V.Sivakumar, who
challenged the matter being referred
to the Federal Court.
The other four judges who sat with
him were Chief Judge of Malaya Datuk
Arifin Zakaria, Federal Court judges
Datuk Nik Hashim Nik Ab Rahman and
Datuk S. Augustine Paul and Appeals
Court judge Datuk James Foong.
Three assemblymen – Jamaluddin
Mohd Radzi (Behrang), Capt (R) Mohd
Osman Jailu (Changkat Jering) and
Hee Yit Foong (Jelapang) – had applied
for their suit against Sivakumar to be
referred to the apex court under article
63 of the Perak Constitution 1957.
On Monday, counsel for Sivakumar,
Sulaiman Abdullah, objected the appli-
cation on the grounds that the Federal
Court had no jurisdiction to deal with
article 63 of the Perak Constitution as it
was a pre-Merdeka Day legislation.
Yesterday, Firoz Hussein Ahmad
Jamaluddin, counsel for the three
assemblymen, pronounced the con-
stitutional question for the court’s
determination: “Whether on the true
interpretation of article 36 (5) of the
Perak Constitution, read together with
section 12 (3) of the Election Act 1958,
the Election Commission is the rightful
entity which establishes if there is a
casual vacancy of a state legislative
assembly seat of Perak.”
“The proper way to interpret article
36 (5) is that, the casual vacancy is a
vacancy established by the Election
Commission, and not by the speaker.
There is no provision for the speaker
to establish a casual vacancy.
“The provision in article 36 (5)
should be read with section 12 (3) of
the Election Act, when we read and
look at the two provisions, it is clear
that the establishment of a casual va-
cancy is by the Election Commission.”
Sivakumar had announced on Feb
2 that Jamaluddin and Mohd Osman
had submitted resignation letters and
declared that their seats were vacant,
but Election Commission chairman
Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusuf declared
they were still the assemblymen for
the two seats and no by-elections
would be called, he said.
At this juncture, Tommy Thomas,
also a counsel for Sivakumar, inter-
jected: “When the Federal Court is not
exercising its original jurisdiction, some
direction must be given (to the parties).
We want to make sure our right to put
in affidavits will not be prejudiced. But
we do not have opportunity to put in
our affidavits, we need time to do it.”
Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani
Patail urged the court not to delay the
hearing of the matter.
“The question here arises from the
letter (by Sivakumar) and the provi-
sion of the constitution that needs to
be interpreted. What further evidence
could there be? The government must
run in Perak and time is an essence.
Let’s have the matter dealt (with) once
and for all,” he said.
Firoz Hussein said: “We are not
putting any new evidence. We are
purely seeking for the interpretation
of the Perak Constitution. We need
to resolve the Perak crisis as soon as
possible.”
Justice Arifin ordered Sivakumar to
file affidavits and adjourned the hear-
ing to 9.30am today. – Bernama
MACC nabs five over
illegal logging bribes
KUANTAN: Five people, including two
public servants, were arrested at a
hotel in Genting Highlands on Tuesday
over alleged bribery in connection with
illegal logging in two forest reserves.
In a statement yesterday, Malaysian
Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Pa-
hang director Sutinah Sutan said those
arrested were aged between 30 and 49
and the bribe offered was RM55,000.
She said one of the civil servants ar-
rested was from the Bentong Forestry
Office and the other from the Temerloh
Forestry Office, while another three
arrested were members of the public.
The three were believed to have
given the bribe to the two government
employees as inducement to avoid
action being taken for illegal logging
activities in the forest reserves of
Karak and Bentong. – Bernama