The Edge submits for suspension order to be quashed
The decision by the Home Ministry and the government to suspend two publications of The Edge Communications Sdn Bhd for three months is irrational and unreasonable, the High Court in Kuala Lumpur was told today.
The Edge's lead counsel Darryl Goon, in submitting for the order to be quashed, said there were 300 articles which its publications, The Edge Financial Daily and The Edge Financial Weekly , had published on the troubled 1MDB.
However, they were not told which articles were offensive.
Furthermore, Goon said, there was no ban on the word '1MDB', nor was it being gazetted by the minister for it to be banned, while other publications also continued to use it, or report on it.
"The suspension is allegedly made based on Section 7 (1) of the Printing Presses and Publications Act as its publication allegedly has upset public security. But under Section 7(1), the words used must be gazetted, by order of the minister.
"There is no gazette of an order, directly or indirectly, against 1MDB and hence there is no breach of Section 7 (1).
"Therefore, The Edge could not have committed a breach as there was no order. Hence the suspension is unconstitutional and a violation of freedom of speech and expression under Article 10 (1) (a) of the Federal Constitution," argued Goon.
The Edge Financial Daily and The Edge Financial Weekly were ordered to be suspended from July 27 to Oct 27 by Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
Goon further said that a representative of The Edge group went to meet with a representative from the Home Ministry on July 22, after being told to be there within three hours and nine minutes.
He said that The Edge had provided all information regarding its articles to Bank Negara on July 20 and to the police on July 21.
“On July 22, our representative went there and the meeting only lasted for 30 minutes. However, the next day the ministry prepared a suspension letter and we received it on July 24,” the senior lawyer said.
Only issues of corporate governance raised
Goon maintained that The Edge's articles were on corporate governance, and it is unlikely for these to be prejudicial to public order or public security or alarm public opinion.
“We say that there has been no evidence produced by the minister to show prejudice to public order or unrest that could be attributed to The Edge's publications.
“The Edge's publications have been reporting on 1MDB since 2009, and began raising questions about the financial management of 1MDB since April 2014 by raising it had yet to furnish its audited accounts.
“A year had gone since and this had not resulted in public disorder,” he said.
The lawyer further highlighted the mismanagement in 1MDB had resulted in a task force being formed, comprising the attorney-general, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission and Bank Negara.
There was also another task force formed under the finance minister and a minister in the Prime Minister's Department and even the auditor-general of Malaysia is looking into it.
“Furthermore, recently Bank Negara had reported it is looking for two individuals who were attached to 1MDB and these two had been identified in our publication. None of the agencies, came to The Edge to say our report is not correct,” Goon said.
He added that recently the Swiss attorney-general also confirmed that it is conducting investigations on 1MDB and this showed the sources of information of the two publications are credible, and the suspension is without merit.
Goon further reiterated that the publications never linked the prime minister or any politician as its articles were solely based on raising issues of corporate governance, and this is according to publication licences issued.
For this reason, the lawyer said, the review application should be allowed and The Edge’s claim of misfeasance in public office should be allowed
Suspension based on Section 6
Senior Federal counsel Alice Loke said the power to suspend the financial papers were based on Section 6 of the Printing Presses and Publications Act, as the articles are considered undesirable publication.
Loke further claimed that the Home Ministry had given sufficient particulars to issue the show cause notice to The Edge group.
“Furthermore, the ministry raises the question as to where the publication obtained the information, that it raised it from the cyberspace that resulted in confusion and irresponsible reporting that was not unverified.
“The publication of those articles had caused a negative perception on the government and leadership of this country. The source gained from cyberspace is from Sarawak Report which the ministry considers as irresponsible,” she said.
Loke further cited some articles published by The Edge titled “What 1MDB got with RM42 billion” and “What can 1MDB do with the funds” as articles which it had issues with.
She also raised questions on some of the captions provided in the articles published and the headlines.
“In light of all these articles, it can be seen that it is skewed to focus on the investigations and it started with the alleged financial mismanagement. The publication created fear and intense public debate,” said Loke, adding that the suspension order was issued in view of the likelihood of harm.
She defended the home minister's decision as it cannot be said to be outrageous, absurd or unreasonable.
“The articles created public anger to the leadership, and were trying to force it (the leader) to resign and this would lead to a political crisis and go against national interests. For this reason, the judicial review application should be dismissed,” the senior federal counsel added.
Justice Asmabi Mohamad heard submissions today and will deliver his decision on Sept 21.
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