Najib asks court for passport release to be with expectant daughter in Singapore

KUALA LUMPUR — Former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak has also applied to the courts for his passport to be temporarily released, to enable him to go to Singapore where his daughter Nooryana Najwa is expected to give birth soon.

Najib’s lawyer Nur Syahirah Hanapiah told Malay Mail that her client had filed the application on Thursday (Oct 14), and also confirmed that the Court of Appeal would be hearing the application next Monday.

Earlier on Friday, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur allowed Rosmah’s application, ordering for the passport to be released that day to Rosmah and for it to be returned by Dec 6.

Rosmah had applied on Tuesday for her passport to be temporarily released for more than a month to be with her daughter Nooryana in Singapore.

The judge had also said the passport release carries the condition of Rosmah being permitted to leave for Singapore from Oct 22 and that she must return to Malaysia by Nov 21.

In her application, Rosmah had said Ms Nooryana has a history of complications during delivery, and that she needs to be with Ms Nooryana before, during and after the upcoming delivery of a second child in Singapore to provide assistance, care and emotional support.

Ms Nooryana and her Kazakhstan husband Daniyar Kessikbayev currently live in Singapore.

Mr Kessikbayev is the nephew of former Kazakhstan president Nursultan Nazarbayev, who stepped down from office in March 2019 after nearly 30 years in power.

Rosmah only had to make one application for her passport’s temporary return as the High Court judge hearing both her corruption trial and her money-laundering trial is the same judge.

In comparison, former deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had to apply separately to two High Court judges hearing his two different ongoing trials, to ask for his passport to be temporarily released to seek medical treatment in Germany for his neck and back pain.

After both judges allowed his application on Monday, Ahmad Zahid was allowed to fly to Germany, with the courts granting the passport release from Oct 26 to Nov 21.

Najib is facing five criminal trials, two of which have yet to begin.

For the first criminal case involving RM42 million (S$13.6 billion) of former 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) subsidiary SRC International, the High Court had in July 2020 found Najib to be guilty of all seven charges — criminal breach of trust, power abuse and money laundering — and had imposed on him jail sentences as well as a RM210 million fine.

Najib had appealed against both his conviction and sentencing in the SRC International case. The Court of Appeal concluded the hearing of the appeal on May 18 this year but have yet to deliver its decision.

Najib also has an ongoing trial in relation to four charges of abuse of power and 21 money laundering charges in relation to more than RM2 billion of 1MDB funds. The case being heard before High Court judge Collin Lawrence Sequerah.

Najib also has another ongoing trial involving his alleged abuse of position as prime minister and finance minister in February 2016 by instructing for amendments in the auditor-general’s report on 1MDB before it was presented to Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee to avoid any civil or criminal action, with this case being heard before High Court judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan. MALAY MAIL