Najib: We will appeal against decision

KUALA LUMPUR, May 11-2009, By Shannon Teoh – malaysianinsider

The prime minister said that Barisan Nasional (BN) will appeal the Kuala Lumpur High Court decision declaring Datuk Seri Nizar Jamaluddin as the rightful mentri besar of Perak.

Datuk Seri Najib Razak said this evening that BN will file an appeal tomorrow.

“We are appealing against the decision. We hope for an early date for the appeal,” he told reporters after meeting Pemudah, the special taskforce established to simplify business dealings with the government. “We feel we have a strong case.”

The High Court had today also ordered Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir and his executive officers to vacate their offices, and the judge also rejected an appeal from Zambry for a stay of the declaration.

When asked by reporters if the state assembly should be dissolved and elections held, Najib replied that it was the Sultan of Perak’s decision to make.

He added that he has not made any arrangement to meet the Perak ruler.

However, Nizar is seeking an audience with the Perak Sultan to ask for consent to dissolve the state assembly.

When asked about moving a motion of no-confidence against Nizar instead of appealing the court decision, Najib replied that their first action will be to appeal.

Najib also asked Perakians to keep calm.

“Don’t get overexcited,” he said. “We will solve the problem.”

Several police Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) trucks have been observed pulling up at the Perak State Secretariat in Ipoh and state police chief Datuk Zulkefli Abdulah has warned the public not to gather near the secretariat complex to prevent any untoward incident.