FMT:
Govt seeks to stay RM37mil judgment for Pastor Koh’s family
3 hours ago
Ho Kit Yen
Senior federal counsel Nurul Farhana Khalid says the stay was sought on grounds that the case involves a large sum of public funds
Susanna Liew, the wife of Pastor Raymond Koh who was abducted in broad daylight in February 2017.
KUALA LUMPUR: The government is seeking to stay the payment of the more than RM37 million judgment awarded to the family of missing Pastor Raymond Koh in their lawsuit against the government and the police.
Senior federal counsel Nurul Farhana Khalid told the High Court here today that the government was seeking the stay on grounds that the case involves a large sum of public funds.
She said the payment would also require coordination among several government agencies to channel the funds into a trust account, should payment be made.
“This stay (of the court order) will not prejudice the plaintiffs (the family),” Farhana said.
She insisted there had been no delay in filing the stay application, as it was submitted after the government obtained all necessary court documents.
“This is not an issue where we (the government) refuse to honour the judgment,” she added.
Lawyer Jerald Gomez, representing the family, objected to the stay application, describing it as an attempt to deny the family the fruits of their litigation.
“The application to stay the judgment should have been made immediately after the High Court delivered its decision on Nov 5,” he said, adding that an appeal was filed within 24 hours instead.
Justice Mahazan Mat Taib fixed Jan 26 for a decision.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled last year that one or more of the defendants, who are current and former police officers, were involved in Koh’s abduction and had acted under orders nine years ago.
Justice Su Tiang Joo ordered a sum of RM33 million to be entered against the government over the “wrongful acts” committed against Koh. However, the funds have to be kept in a trust fund and cannot go directly to Koh’s wife, Susanna Liew, and her three children, until the pastor’s whereabouts are ascertained.
Su also ordered the award of RM4 million in general and aggravated damages to Liew, along with RM250,000 in costs.
Senior federal counsel Nurul Farhana Khalid told the High Court here today that the government was seeking the stay on grounds that the case involves a large sum of public funds.
She said the payment would also require coordination among several government agencies to channel the funds into a trust account, should payment be made.
“This stay (of the court order) will not prejudice the plaintiffs (the family),” Farhana said.
She insisted there had been no delay in filing the stay application, as it was submitted after the government obtained all necessary court documents.
“This is not an issue where we (the government) refuse to honour the judgment,” she added.
Lawyer Jerald Gomez, representing the family, objected to the stay application, describing it as an attempt to deny the family the fruits of their litigation.
“The application to stay the judgment should have been made immediately after the High Court delivered its decision on Nov 5,” he said, adding that an appeal was filed within 24 hours instead.
Justice Mahazan Mat Taib fixed Jan 26 for a decision.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court ruled last year that one or more of the defendants, who are current and former police officers, were involved in Koh’s abduction and had acted under orders nine years ago.
Justice Su Tiang Joo ordered a sum of RM33 million to be entered against the government over the “wrongful acts” committed against Koh. However, the funds have to be kept in a trust fund and cannot go directly to Koh’s wife, Susanna Liew, and her three children, until the pastor’s whereabouts are ascertained.
Su also ordered the award of RM4 million in general and aggravated damages to Liew, along with RM250,000 in costs.
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