KOTA KINABALU: The Parti Kesejahteraan Demokratik Masyarakat (KDM) has clarified that the Melalap State Assemblyman Datuk Peter Anthony did not apply for a royal pardon, as reported by a local news portal.
Its secretary-general, Willie Jude Junaidi, said that Peter has only filed a review against the Court of Appeal’s decision, which upheld his sentence on March 4.
He said the judicial review was filed last week, while the case management has been scheduled for the near future.
“The report stating that Peter has applied for a royal pardon, as cited by a local news portal quoting the DUN Speaker (Datuk Seri Kadzim M Yahya), is inaccurate.
“Peter has only filed for judicial review so far and has not reached that stage (applying for a royal pardon); many have asked me about it, and therefore an explanation needs to be given,” he said in a statement here today.
Earlier, on March 4, the Court of Appeal upheld a three-year prison sentence and a fine of RM50,000 against Peter for the offence of falsifying documents related to maintenance and service contracts at the University of Malaysia Sabah (UMS) in 2014.
Willie said that the party had also sent a notice to the Speaker of the Sabah State Assembly regarding the judicial review application.
He said the notice was sent within the 14-day period as previously stipulated by the Speaker of the Sabah State Assembly.
“We have sent the notice to the DUN within the stipulated period, and now it is up to them to make a decision,” he said.
On March 5, the Speaker of the Sabah State Assembly said that Peter Anthony has 14 days to pursue legal avenues before his seat will be automatically vacated.
“On behalf of the party, we wish Datuk Peter all the best and hope that the outcome of the judicial review will be in his favour,” he said.
