KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 18 — Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor’s lawyer, Datuk Jagjit Singh, today said her defence would be handicapped as her trial judge did not fully explain why he directed her to answer her three corruption charges today.
Earlier today, High Court judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan said that the prosecution has successfully proven a prima facie case against Rosmah on all of her three charges of corruption involving a RM1.25 billion project for the supply of electricity to 369 rural schools in Sarawak.
“We are hampered, to a certain extent, because if he had given his grounds, we know his thinking in his evaluation for calling for the defence.
“Right now we don’t know his thinking; we only have to guess,” Jagjit told reporters before leaving the High Court here, where the case proceedings were held this morning.
However, Jagjit said that he is confident the country’s justice system will give Rosmah a fair trial.
He added that Rosmah was “emotionally upset and distressed” after hearing the court’s decision and had to be comforted before being sent home.
When Rosmah was leaving the court today, there was a slight commotion as journalists swarmed around her trying to take her photograph, with some being pushed over.
Police and bystanders shouted warnings to the journalists, asking them to maintain physical distancing in line with health and safety measures to avoid the spread of Covid-19 which is currently affecting the country.
Rosmah will be seen here again, as the court has set June 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23 and July 12 and 15 as the initial dates for the defence stage of the trial.
She told the court today she will be giving a sworn statement from the witness stand.
In this trial, Rosmah is facing several charges, including allegedly receiving a RM5 million bribe and a RM1.5 million bribe from Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd’s Saidi Abang Samsudin on the dates of December 20, 2016 and September 7, 2017 in exchange for helping the company get the RM1.25 billion solar hybrid project.
