Azmin Swats “Sheraton Move” Lawsuit By Gombak Voters, Courts Say There’s No Need For Full Trial
The Kuala Lumpur High Court had previously disallowed Azmin’s application to strike out the suit.
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Gombak MP Datuk Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali today succeeded in nullifying a lawsuit filed by 10 voters in his constituency over an alleged breach of fiduciary duty.
This is after a three-member panel of the Court of Appeal unanimously set aside an earlier decision by the High Court to dismiss Azmin’s application to strike out the suit.
The panel, led by Justice Datuk Yaacob Md Sam finds that there was an error in the High Court’s previous decision not to allow Azmin to strike out the suit.
“We find that the respondents’ claim is obviously unsustainable. The action by respondents is bound to fail.
“There is no necessity for the suit to proceed for full trial,” said Yaacob.
The other two judges that sat on the panel are Datuk Lee Heng Cheong and Datuk Hashim Hamzah.
The court made no order on costs as this was a matter of public interest.
The decision was delivered by the panel following submissions from both parties during proceedings via Zoom.
On June 30 last year, the Kuala Lumpur High Court disallowed Azmin’s application to strike out the suit.
The suit against Azmin, who is also the Senior International Trade and Industry Minister and the Bukit Antarabangsa assemblyman, was filed on November 27, 2020 following the infamous “Sheraton Move” that led to the fall of Pakatan Harapan (PH) federal government.
In their statement of claim, the 10 voters sought damages including aggravated or exemplary damages, interests, costs and other orders deemed fit by the court. They also seek a declaration that Mohamed Azmin had breached his fiduciary duty.
The group claimed that Azmin was instrumental in bringing down the PH government, and that Azmin’s pledge to contest under the PKR banner in the 2018 General Election to help topple the Barisan Nasional government and to get rid of corrupt officials is nothing more than empty promises as he only wanted the support from the voters to help him win the Gombak parliamentary seat and also the Bukit Antarabangsa state seat.
On 12 March 2021, Azmin filed an application to strike out the suit citing that it did not disclose a reasonable cause of action and was frivolous, vexatious and an abuse of court process, adding that the suit also violates his fundamental right to freedom of association as provided under Article 10 Clause (1) (c) of the Federal Constitution.
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