KUALA LUMPUR: Things got a little heated at the Sessions Court here after Kinabatangan member of parliament Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin and his wife Datin Seri Zizie Izette Abdul Samad were ordered to enter their defence for accepting RM2.8 million through corrupt means.
This happened after Sessions Court judge Rozina Ayob said she was giving priority to the case and wanted the defence stage to begin this month itself.
She said this after the defence informed her that their client needed to attend the next parliament session which was slated to begin on Oct 3 and end on Nov 29.
Bung Moktar's lead counsel M Athimulan then informed the judge that the most suitable dates would be in December.
However, Rozina immediately shook her head and said she wanted the hearing to start in September itself.
This prompted Zizie's lead counsel Datuk K Kumaraendran to jump up to protest.
"This is not right...I have other clients who are facing the death penalty and their cases have been fixed for hearing long before this.
"There are also others whose cases are pending for a long time. Why must this Datuk Seri's case be considered more important than the others," he said.
Rozina then said she wanted to see both counsel in chambers before calling for a short break.
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