PETALING JAYA: Former finance minister Daim Zainuddin is ready to be charged in hospital if need be, his wife Naimah Khalid said today following remarks by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Azam Baki that the prosecution against Daim had to be postponed as he is undergoing treatment.
Azam also said the anti-graft agency had received the green light from the attorney-general’s chambers to bring Daim to court last week, although he did not specify the nature of the charges in question.
In a New Straits Times report, Azam said the prosecution against Daim had to be postponed as he is undergoing treatment at a private hospital, and that MACC could not ascertain why the former finance minister was admitted as the doctor treating him “did not disclose what was wrong with Daim”.
In a statement, Naimah said neither she nor her family’s legal counsel were informed that Daim would be charged.
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“Hence, the insinuation made by Azam Baki that Daim is somehow evading being charged by getting hospitalised is false and mischievous.
“Particularly offensive are his disparaging remarks against the dedicated and professional doctors of the hospital.
“Daim has been warded and is undergoing treatment. Subject to the permission of the hospital and medical team, Daim is prepared to face this political charge in the hospital itself.
“We will leave this to Azam and MACC to decide.”
She added that Daim was prepared to face “any charge, anywhere”, and would vigorously defend himself in accordance with the law.
Naimah herself was charged at the Kuala Lumpur sessions court yesterday with failing to comply with an MACC notice requiring the declaration of assets such as companies, several plots of land, as well as two vehicles.
Earlier this month, MACC said it summoned Naimah and her sons, Amir and Amin, to provide information on assets belonging to the family.
In a later statement, MACC said a notice was served on Daim under Section 36(1)(a) of the MACC Act 2009 on June 7, 2023. His family members were served notices under Section 36(1)(b) of the same Act.
MACC said its investigation into Daim began in February 2023 and was based on information from the Pandora Papers leak, which linked several prominent Malaysians to offshore tax havens.
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