30 civil society groups urge AG to explain DNAA in Nicky Liow case
The coalition wants the Attorney-General's Chambers to publicly explain why a RM36 million money laundering prosecution was dropped.
Thirty civil society organisations have urged the Attorney-General to publicly explain why Nicky Liow was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal (DNAA) in a RM36 million money laundering case.
In a joint statement issued today, the coalition said Liow's lawyer confirmed the DNAA was granted on June 15, 2023, after the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) accepted representations submitted on behalf of his client.
"More than three years have passed, and the AGC has yet to explain to the public why the representations were accepted, what considerations were used in making that decision, or whether the 26 charges will be reinstated.
"The people have a right to know why a RM36 million money laundering prosecution was halted, rather than learning about it years later through his lawyer's press conference," the statement said.
Among the organisations backing the statement are Bersih, the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs, Transparency International Malaysia, the Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism, Rasuah Busters, Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (ABIM) and Aliran.
Liow's lawyer, Rajpal Singh, announced last week that the prosecution dropped the case after Liow settled RM400,000 in outstanding taxes. He also said Liow had never been convicted of any offence and should not be regarded as a criminal.
The coalition said Liow's case reflected a broader pattern in which high-profile prosecutions involving corruption and money laundering are discontinued through DNAAs without any public explanation.
They cited the case of Deputy Prime Minister Zahid Hamidi, who was granted a DNAA in September 2023 over 47 charges of corruption, criminal breach of trust and money laundering linked to Yayasan Akalbudi, as well as former prime minister Najib Razak, who received DNAAs in separate criminal breach of trust and money laundering cases in 2024 and 2025.
The government's credibility in fighting corruption, they said, would be judged not only by the filing of charges but also by how prosecutions are handled once cases reach the courts.
They reiterated that separating the roles of attorney-general and public prosecutor alone would not improve accountability. Instead, prosecutorial discretion must come with legal safeguards, including a duty to give written reasons when high-profile prosecutions are dropped, guidelines on the use of that discretion, and annual public reporting on discontinued cases and their outcomes.
They also urged Parliament to include these measures in the implementing legislation for the proposed separation of the two offices.
This article was produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI), in accordance with our editorial policy.