THE interim gag order secured by former prime minister Najib Razak’s lawyers to prevent any public discussion of his court case also applies in the Dewan Rakyat, said Speaker Mohamad Ariff Md Yusoff.

“I have reviewed this matter and decided that as it involves prosecution of a criminal case in Malaysian court, therefore, (the case) cannot be discussed, debated or mentioned in the Dewan Rakyat, as stated in the gag order.

“This is to respect the jurisdiction of the court and the principles of separation of power,” he told the Dewan Rakyat today.

The restriction, however, was limited to matters related to the charges.

He also overruled the previous ruling by former Dewan Rakyat speaker Pandikar Amin Mulia which barred matters related to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), including the civil suit filed by the United States Department of Justice, to be discussed in the lower house.

“I have deliberated on this matter and interpreted that the court in Standing Order 36 (2) only applies to Malaysian courts, hence it is not applicable to foreign courts.”

He also lifted the previous ban on raising the issue of the RM2.6 billion political donation that was deposited into Najib’s personal accounts.

With this ruling, parliamentarians can now debate the 1MDB issue and the Pekan MP’s alleged involvement on the matter.

However, they are still barred from debating or discussing issues related to Najib’s criminal trial.

In March 2016, Pandikar had decided that all RM2.6 billion donation-related questions were sub judice, meaning lawmakers were not allowed to raise or discuss the matter in Parliament.

In October 2016, Pandikar said questions related to civil suits filed by the US DoJ did not need to be answered, citing the principle of sub judice again.

Ariff’s rulings came following a request from opposition backbencher Ismail Mohamed Said (BN-Kuala Krau) to seek a new ruling from the speaker on whether 1MDB-related issues can be discussed during debates.

Ariff said the rulings were made based on the principles of freedom of speech and expression in the august house that should be respected.

“The principle of sub judice should not be defined in ways that can result in the freedom of speech of the MPs being ineffective in raising national and public issues through this august house,” he said.

Last month, the Kuala Lumpur High Court granted an interim gag order against the media from discussing the merits of Najib’s criminal case.

Defence lawyer Muhammad Shafee Abdullah made the request on grounds that his client had been facing a trial by media since he stepped down as the prime minister.

After granting the interim order, judge Mohd Sofian Abd Razak fixed August 8 for a hearing on the official application as the order was objected by the prosecution.

On July 4, Najib was charged with three counts of criminal breach of trust and one count of using his position for gratification as part of a probe into missing money from state fund 1MDB.

The charges were in connection with how RM42 million from SRC International, a former 1MDB unit, was deposited into Najib’s bank account. – August 2, 2018.