KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's former prime minister Najib Razak on Tuesday filed an application to recuse Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat from hearing his final appeal against a graft conviction and a jail sentence,Najib's lawyer, Mr Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, told the court on Tuesday that the application was made at the eleventh hour late on Monday evening, and it has yet to make its way to the attention of the five-member bench chaired by Justice Tengku Maimun on Tuesday morning.
Najib's defence team is now attempting to push the hearing of his final appeal until the recusal application has been heard and disposed of by the court.on Tuesday, meaning that the final appeal could have concluded on Tuesday if not for the recusal application. Mr Hisyam, however, contended that the recusal application was not a"delaying tactic" from the defence.
This was despite the fact that the defence have already attempted to raise a conflict of interest motion against the High Court judge who convicted Najib, as well as tried twice to adjourn proceedings citing lack of preparedness among Najib's lawyers, who were just hired last month. Najib arrived at the country's top court on Tuesday morning for the final leg of his appeal to set aside his corruption conviction and 12-year jail sentence over a case linked to the 1MDB financial scandal.Najib, 69, was found guilty in July 2020 of criminal breach of trust, abuse of power, and money laundering for illegally receiving about US$10 million from SRC International, a former unit of state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad .