CHIEF Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat ruled today that there was no nexus between the Facebook post made by her husband with the Najib Razak SRC International appeal, when ruling on a move to recuse her from the hearing.

Maimun said that based on the Facebook post by her husband (Zamani Ibrahim) and the ‘Walk for Justice’ organised by the Malaysian Bar, she was of the view that it did not mean the legal threshold of bias had been passed.

“To recuse a judge is a real danger of bias. It is my view that the test has not been established. The Facebook post by my husband cannot amount to a real danger of bias,” she said.

Najib cited a Facebook post by her husband, Zamani Ibrahim, on May 11, 2018 as the reason for his bid to recuse the chief justice.

“I verily believe that these developments are highly disturbing in light of the fact that Zamani clearly has negative sentiments towards my leadership of this country while I was the prime minister and had concluded I had siphoned sovereign government funds into my personal accounts,” he said.

“Being the husband of the chairperson that is adjudicating my appeal, it is likely that he would have influenced the thinking of the chairperson as to my alleged culpability.”

Maimun said the Facebook posting was made four years ago when the case was not even there.

“The views expressed by a third party (by the spouse) and the letter issued by the court on allowing lawyers to attend the Walk of Justice is a non-starter,” she said.

Justice Tengku Maimun presided over the appeal with Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Abang Iskandar Abang Hashim and Federal Court judges Datuk Nallini Pathmanathan, Datuk Mary Lim Thiam Suan and Datuk Mohamad Zabidin Mohd. – August 23, 2022.